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The "screech" at start-up are the turbopumps winding up. Turbopumps deliver the O2 and kerosene to the engines at high volumes & pressures.
Engine bay view (WMV)....
External view (WMV)....
The Falcon 9 first stage will have 3x this many engines (9) with a 10th powering the second stage. It's significant that they plan to skip a 7 engine test in the sequence (1, 3, 5, 9 instead of 1, 3, 5, 7, 9). This speaks volumes of their confidence based on the tests so far, though if they have an issue with 5 then a 7 engine test could be re-inserted in the schedule.
Falcon 9 will be used to launch satellites, cargo and the SpaceX Dragon spaceship at a fraction of the cost of current launchers.
The much larger Falcon 9 Heavy will have 27 engines - 3 first stages bundled together - with a 28th powering the second stage. This one's a lot like the Titan IV. Can't wait to see the Heavy fire up
Engine bay view (WMV)....
External view (WMV)....
The Falcon 9 first stage will have 3x this many engines (9) with a 10th powering the second stage. It's significant that they plan to skip a 7 engine test in the sequence (1, 3, 5, 9 instead of 1, 3, 5, 7, 9). This speaks volumes of their confidence based on the tests so far, though if they have an issue with 5 then a 7 engine test could be re-inserted in the schedule.
Falcon 9 will be used to launch satellites, cargo and the SpaceX Dragon spaceship at a fraction of the cost of current launchers.
The much larger Falcon 9 Heavy will have 27 engines - 3 first stages bundled together - with a 28th powering the second stage. This one's a lot like the Titan IV. Can't wait to see the Heavy fire up
SpaceX Conducts First Three-Engine Firing of Falcon 9 Rocket
McGregor TX – Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) conducted the first three-engine firing of its Falcon 9 medium to heavy lift rocket at its Texas Test Facility outside McGregor, on March 8, 2008. At full power the engines generated over 270,000 pounds of force, and consumed 1,050 lbs of fuel and liquid oxygen per second. This three-engine test again sets the record as the most powerful test yet on the towering 235-foot tall test stand. A total of nine Merlin 1C engines will power the Falcon 9 rocket.
The test series continues with the addition of two engines for a total of five, then finally the full complement of nine engines. With all engines firing, the Falcon 9 can generate over one million pounds of thrust in vacuum - four times the maximum thrust of a 747 aircraft.
“The incremental approach to testing allows us to closely observe how each additional engine influences the entire system,†said Tom Mueller, Vice President of Propulsion for SpaceX. “This ensures that we obtain as much data, knowledge and experience as possible as we approach the full nine engine configuration. To date we have not encountered any unexpected interactions between the engines.â€
The Merlin 1C next generation liquid fueled rocket booster engine is among the highest performing gas generator cycle kerosene engines ever built, exceeding the Boeing Delta II main engine, the Lockheed Atlas II main engine, and on par with the Saturn V F-1 engine. It is the first new American booster engine in a decade and only the second American booster engine since the development of the Space Shuttle Main Engine thirty years ago.
The first Falcon 9 remains on-schedule for delivery to the SpaceX launch site at Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral, Florida, by the end of 2008.
McGregor TX – Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) conducted the first three-engine firing of its Falcon 9 medium to heavy lift rocket at its Texas Test Facility outside McGregor, on March 8, 2008. At full power the engines generated over 270,000 pounds of force, and consumed 1,050 lbs of fuel and liquid oxygen per second. This three-engine test again sets the record as the most powerful test yet on the towering 235-foot tall test stand. A total of nine Merlin 1C engines will power the Falcon 9 rocket.
The test series continues with the addition of two engines for a total of five, then finally the full complement of nine engines. With all engines firing, the Falcon 9 can generate over one million pounds of thrust in vacuum - four times the maximum thrust of a 747 aircraft.
“The incremental approach to testing allows us to closely observe how each additional engine influences the entire system,†said Tom Mueller, Vice President of Propulsion for SpaceX. “This ensures that we obtain as much data, knowledge and experience as possible as we approach the full nine engine configuration. To date we have not encountered any unexpected interactions between the engines.â€
The Merlin 1C next generation liquid fueled rocket booster engine is among the highest performing gas generator cycle kerosene engines ever built, exceeding the Boeing Delta II main engine, the Lockheed Atlas II main engine, and on par with the Saturn V F-1 engine. It is the first new American booster engine in a decade and only the second American booster engine since the development of the Space Shuttle Main Engine thirty years ago.
The first Falcon 9 remains on-schedule for delivery to the SpaceX launch site at Space Launch Complex 40, Cape Canaveral, Florida, by the end of 2008.