Live coverage: SpaceX Falcon Heavy launches NASA’s Psyche on mission to a metal asteroid

SpaceX will perform a multi-hour experiment on the second stage of a Falcon 9 rocket after the launcher deploys a Dragon supply ship on the way to the International Space Station Thursday, gathering thermal data and other information to verify the vehicle’s ability to perform long-duration missions and inject payloads into demanding, high-energy orbits.

Ready for a journey into the sun’s enigmatic, scorching corona, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has been encapsulated inside the nose cone of its Delta 4-Heavy rocket for liftoff Saturday.

The mission is part of SpaceX’s plan to bolster its internet network in Alaska and other polar regions. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from pad 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base at 8:52 p.m. PDT (11:52 p.m. EDT / 0352 UTC).