Elon Musk’s Tesla roadstar dummy has more to worry about than the liberal dousing of radiation it is getting from its prime position on top of Spacex’s Falcon Heavy. The rocket ferrying the car was somewhat too enthusiastic in terms of speed, overshot the preconceived trajectory which would have put it in an orbit around Mars, and is now headed for the asteroid belt.
SpaceX intended to put the roadster into an orbit around the sun that would frequently bring it near to Mars, a preliminary step toward a direct approach. There was more boost in the second stage of the Falcon Heavy than expected, and now the Roadster will also get to see more of the asteroid belt.
According to Musk, the spacecraft “exceeded Mars orbit and kept going to the Asteroid Belt.”
On the surface, the Tesla’s adventure demonstrates the Falcon Heavy’s capabilities of putting objects into deep space.