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SpaceSpaceX Today: Falcon 9, Dragon and Starship
Twenty flashcards with real numbers on rockets and spacecraft already flying: Falcon 9, reused boosters, Crew Dragon and Starship test flights, from NASA and FAA pages.
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20 cards
- How tall is SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket?
- 70 meters, or 229.6 feet.
- How much can Falcon 9 lift to low Earth orbit?
- 22,800 kilograms, or 50,265 pounds.
- How much does a Falcon 9 weigh at launch?
- 549,054 kilograms, or 1,207,920 pounds.
- What powers the Falcon 9 first stage?
- Nine Merlin engines burning liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1).
- How much thrust does Falcon 9 make?
- More than 1.7 million pounds at sea level and over 1.8 million pounds in the vacuum of space.
- What happens right after the Falcon 9 engines ignite?
- A hold-before-release system checks that all engines reach full thrust before the rocket is released for flight.
- What first does Falcon 9 hold among orbital rockets?
- It is the first orbital class rocket capable of re-flight.
- Which hardware lets the Falcon 9 first stage land?
- Carbon fiber landing legs and hypersonic grid fins, stowed during ascent.
- By June 5, 2023, how many times had SpaceX reflown a first stage?
- 170 times, between Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy.
- How busy was SpaceX on the June 5, 2023 resupply launch?
- It was SpaceX's 38th launch that year and its 237th mission overall.
- What had cargo Dragon done for the space station by June 2023?
- Since its 2012 debut as the first private spacecraft to visit, 37 trips carrying 280K pounds of cargo to and from the station.
- What first came with the Crew-12 booster landing on Feb. 13, 2026?
- The first time SpaceX launched and landed a booster from the same launch complex in Florida (Space Launch Complex 40).
- How fast do Falcon 9's first-stage engines use propellant?
- The nine Merlin engines burn through one million pounds of propellant in about three minutes.
- How fast does Falcon 9 push Crew Dragon to reach orbit?
- To approximately 17,500 mph.
- How many people can Crew Dragon carry?
- Up to seven passengers; for NASA missions it carries up to four astronauts.
- What is Crew Dragon's abort system?
- Eight SuperDraco engines and parachutes, ready from the launch pad all the way to orbital insertion.
- How reused was the Dragon that flew Crew-12?
- Dragon Freedom had already flown Crew-4, Crew-9 and the private Axiom Mission 2 and 3.
- Who first flew on Crew Dragon, and when?
- NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley on Demo-2, launched May 30, 2020; they returned 64 days later.
- When did Starship/Super Heavy fly from Boca Chica through early 2025?
- April and November 2023; March, June, October and November 2024; and January and March 2025.
- What did the Super Heavy booster do on Starship Flights 7 and 8?
- It returned to the launch site and was caught by the tower after a landing burn (Jan. 16 and March 6, 2025).
Official sources
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Commercial Crew Program Press Kit (SpaceX Crew Dragon and Falcon 9)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
A Few Fun Facts About Today's Launch (SpaceX resupply, June 5, 2023)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Crew-12: Falcon 9 First Stage Returns (Feb. 13, 2026)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 Launches (Feb. 13, 2026)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
What You Need to Know About NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 Mission
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
Final Tiered Environmental Assessment for SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Vehicle Increased Cadence at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site
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