SpaceX Launches Falcon Heavy for the USSF-52 / X-37B Spaceplane

SpaceX's fifth Falcon Heavy of the year is set to liftoff from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center carrying the US Space Force X-37B spaceplane. Falcon Heavy - USSF-52 (OTV-7) Window Opens: December 28th at 8:07PM EST (01:07 UTC on the 29th) Window Closes: December 28th at 8:17PM EST (01:17 UTC on the 29th) Current T0: December 28th at 8:07PM EST (01:00 UTC on the 29th) Mission: Falcon Heavy launch of the US Space Force X-37B Vehicle 2 Target orbit: Classified, theorized to be a highly elliptical and highly inclined orbit. Boosters: B1064-5 as MY booster, B1065-5 as PY booster, B1084 as center core. 76d 10h 47min 17s turnaround for side boosters. Booster histories: Side boosters previously flew USSF-44, USSF-67, Echostar 24, and NASA's Psyche. Center core is new. Booster recovery: Side boosters will land at SpaceX's Landing Zone 1 and Landing Zone 2. Center core will be expended. Fairing recovery: Doug located approximately 1,600km downrange Rocket trajectory: Northeast hugging the east coast of the United States Payload mass: Classified Stubby nozzle: NO (thankfully) Stats: · SpaceX's 97th launch of the year and the 8th launch of the month · 264th Falcon orbital launch since Amos 6, Falcon Heavy's 9th orbital flight. · SpaceX's 72nd launch from LC-39A · 32nd landing on LZ-1 out of 33 attempts · 9th landing on LZ-2 out of 9 attempts · 183rd and 184th successful landings since the last failed one · 300th launch of a SpaceX rocket (5 F1, 284 F9, 9 FH, 2 Starship) Forum: https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=45886.0 ⚡ Become a member of NASASpaceflight's channel for exclusive discord access, fast turnaround clips, and other exclusive benefits. Your support helps us continue our 24/7 coverage. ⚡ 🔍 If you are interested in using footage captured by this stream, please review our content use policy: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/content-use-policy/