A Falcon 9 rocket is a reusable, two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of people and payloads into Earth orbit and beyond. It is a partially reusable medium-lift launch vehicle that can carry cargo and crew into Earth orbit. The rocket is named after the fictional starship the "Millennium Falcon" from the Star Wars film series. Some key features of the Falcon 9 rocket include:
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Reusability: Falcon 9 is the worlds first orbital class reusable rocket. Reusability allows SpaceX to refly the most expensive parts of the rocket, which in turn drives down the cost of space access.
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First Stage: The first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket incorporates nine Merlin engines and aluminum-lithium alloy tanks containing liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) propellant. Falcon 9 generates more than 1.7 million pounds of thrust at sea level. The first stage is equipped with four landing legs made of state-of-the-art carbon fiber with aluminum honeycomb. Placed symmetrically around the base of the rocket, they are stowed at the base of the vehicle and deploy just prior to landing.
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Second Stage: The second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket is powered by a single Merlin engine. For added reliability of restart, the engine has dual redundant pyrophoric igniters using triethylaluminum-triethylborane (TEA-TEB).
The Falcon 9 rocket has evolved through several versions, with V1.0 flying from 2010-2013, V1.1 flying from 2013-2016, and V1.2 Full Thrust first launching in 2015, encompassing the Block 5 variant, which is in operation since May 2018. Falcon 9 is certified for the National Security Space Launch program and NASA Launch Services Program as "Category 3", which can launch the most expensive, important, and complex NASA missions.
