The launch will included a number of Falcon 9 v1.1 "firsts", including: - First use of the upgraded Merlin 1D engines, generating approximately 56 percent more

The launch will included a number of Falcon 9 v1.1 "firsts", including: - First use of the upgraded Merlin 1D engines, generating approximately 56 percent more sea-level thrust than the Merlin 1C engines used on all previous Falcon 9 vehicles. - First use of the significantly longer first stage, which holds the additional propellant for the more powerful engines. - The nine Merlin 1D engines on the first stage are arranged in an octagonal pattern with eight engines in a circle and the ninth in the center. - First launch from SpaceX's new launch facility, Space Launch Complex 4, at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, and will be the first launch over the Pacific ocean using the facilities of the Pacific test range. - First Falcon 9 launch to carry a satellite payload for a commercial customer, and also the first non-CRS mission. Each prior Falcon 9 launch was of a Dragon capsule or a Dragon-shaped test article, although SpaceX has previously successfully launched and deployed a satellite on the Falcon 1, Flight 5 mission. - First Falcon 9 launch to have a jettisonable payload fairing, which introduces the risk of an additional separation event. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_9