SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy lifted off from its Florida launchpad for the first time in over three years on Tuesday for a US Space Force mission, USSF-44.

The launch took place at 9.41 am ET and was broadcast for the world to watch via the SpaceX platform.

Falcon Heavy, the world’s most powerful operational rocket, launched the USSF-44 mission to a geosynchronous Earth orbit from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Ready for future missions

Onboard were two spacecraft, the TETRA-1, a military microsatellite, and a second unknown satellite.

It was the first launch and landing of these Falcon Heavy side boosters, which will be prepared for re-flight on a future US Space Force mission later this year.

SpaceX said in a later update on Tuesday that Falcon Heavy’s side boosters had landed back on Earth – marking the 150th and 151st recovery of orbital class rockets.
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