From SpaceX’s Super Heavy to NASA’s SLS are pushing launch power to record levels. SpaceX's Super Heavy generates 16.7 million pounds thrust, world's most powerful rocket. Saturn V delivered 7.5 million pounds during Apollo missions. SLS produces 8.8 million pounds thrust. 


<p>From SpaceX’s Super Heavy to NASA’s SLS are pushing launch power to record levels. SpaceX's Super Heavy generates 16.7 million pounds thrust, world's most powerful rocket. Saturn V delivered 7.5 million pounds during Apollo missions. SLS produces 8.8 million pounds thrust.&nbsp;</p>

‘Ranked by thrust’: Top 10 most powerful rockets ever built

<p>On September 6, 2025, astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy captured an unprecedented image of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket transiting the Sun’s chromosphere. Taken from a Florida wildlife refuge eight miles west of Cape Canaveral, the photograph shows the rocket’s silhouette cutting through the Sun’s turbulent plasma in hydrogen-alpha light. This is believed to be the first image of its kind, revealing intricate details of the chromosphere, the dynamic, superheated layer just above the Sun’s surface, never before seen in such a context. Described the shot, McCarthy told PetaPixel, ‘a different perspective on space,’ blending science and art to inspire curiosity about the universe.</p><h2>Technical Mastery and Precise Timing</h2><p>Unlike traditional white-light solar images, which show a relatively flat solar disk, McCarthy’s hydrogen-alpha photograph captures fiery shockwaves in the Sun’s plasma, enhanced by light scattered and diffused through the rocket’s plume. To achieve this, McCarthy used a specially designed solar telescope and an astronomy camera, while also recording a secondary image in white light with a Canon R5 camera and solar filter. The launch in question was part of the Starlink 10-57 mission, marking the 27th flight of Booster 1069 carrying 28 satellites to low Earth orbit. McCarthy relied on careful coordination with fellow rocket photographers to calculate the precise position, timing, and angle needed to capture the rocket’s transit across the Sun.</p><h2>Science Meets Art in a Unique Perspective</h2><p>The resulting image is more than just a photograph; it is a rare intersection of science and artistry. The Falcon 9 appears as a crisp, black silhouette cutting across a vibrant, restless Sun, with the chromosphere’s molten plasma providing a dramatic, almost surreal backdrop. The hydrogen-alpha wavelength highlights the Sun’s turbulent features in a way white light cannot, making this capture a historic achievement in astrophotography and space observation. McCarthy’s photograph not only illustrates the technical prowess required for such a shot but also underscores the poetic convergence of human technology and the fiery grandeur of our nearest star, creating a visual record that may never be replicated.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>

This is believed to be the first image of its kind, revealing intricate details of the chromosphere, the dynamic, superheated layer just above the Sun’s surface, never before seen in such a context. 

On September 6, 2025, astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy captured an unprecedented image of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket transiting the Sun’s chromosphere. Taken from a Florida wildlife refuge eight miles west of Cape Canaveral, the photograph shows the rocket’s silhouette cutting through the Sun’s turbulent plasma in hydrogen-alpha light. This is believed to be the first image of its kind, revealing intricate details of the chromosphere, the dynamic, superheated layer just above the Sun’s surface, never before seen in such a context. Described the shot, McCarthy told PetaPixel, ‘a different perspective on space,’ blending science and art to inspire curiosity about the universe. Technical Mastery and Precise Timing Unlike traditional white-light solar images, which show a relatively flat solar disk, McCarthy’s hydrogen-alpha photograph captures fiery shockwaves in the Sun’s plasma, enhanced by light scattered and diffused through the rocket’s plume. To achieve this, McCarthy used a specially designed solar telescope and an astronomy camera, while also recording a secondary image in white light with a Canon R5 camera and solar filter. The launch in question was part of the Starlink 10-57 mission, marking the 27th flight of Booster 1069 carrying 28 satellites to low Earth orbit. McCarthy relied on careful coordination with fellow rocket photographers to calculate the precise position, timing, and angle needed to capture the rocket’s transit across the Sun. Science Meets Art in a Unique Perspective The resulting image is more than just a photograph; it is a rare intersection of science and artistry. The Falcon 9 appears as a crisp, black silhouette cutting across a vibrant, restless Sun, with the chromosphere’s molten plasma providing a dramatic, almost surreal backdrop. The hydrogen-alpha wavelength highlights the Sun’s turbulent features in a way white light cannot, making this capture a historic achievement in astrophotography and space observation. McCarthy’s photograph not only illustrates the technical prowess required for such a shot but also underscores the poetic convergence of human technology and the fiery grandeur of our nearest star, creating a visual record that may never be replicated.

<p>This is believed to be the first image of its kind, revealing intricate details of the chromosphere, the dynamic, superheated layer just above the Sun’s surface, never before seen in such a context.&nbsp;</p>

Historic! Astrophotographer captures SpaceX Falcon 9 cutting through solar chromosphere

This marks the end of Shukla’s 18-day stay aboard the ISS, which began on June 25 after launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

<p>This marks the end of Shukla’s 18-day stay aboard the ISS, which began on June 25 after launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.</p>

Ax-4 undocks: Shubhanshu Shukla starts 22-hour journey home, what happens after landing?

spacexs-dragon

Spacex’s Dragon, News on Spacex’s Dragon, stories on Spacex’s Dragon, articles on Spacex’s Dragon, Spacex’s Dragon stories at Wion, Spacex’s Dragon news, Spacex’s Dragon latest news

spacexs dragon

‘Ranked by thrust’: Top 10 most powerful rockets ever built

Astrophotographer captures SpaceX Falcon 9 cutting through solar chromosphere

Shubhanshu Shukla starts 22-hour journey home, what happens after landing?