CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The maiden launch of SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket is arguably the biggest thing to hit NASA’s Kennedy Space Center since the retirement of the space shuttle fleet in 2011.
Liftoff was set for 3:45 p.m. ET (12:45 p.m. PT) today, amid concerns about upper-level winds.
Hundreds of journalists have signed up to cover the launch from NASA’s historic Launch Complex 39A, where Apollo moon rockets and space shuttles have blasted off in the past. (NASA leased the launch pad to SpaceX in 2014.) Thousands of spectators swarmed to viewing areas surrounding the launch site. The backup to get into Kennedy Space Center’s visitor center stretched for more than 5 miles this morning.