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• SpaceX is the shorter name for Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, a privately-owned American startup company specializing in space transportation. Its latest project is the DragonLab, a free-flying, reusable capsule that could fly commercial or passenger missions into space for a period of one week to two years.MSNBC: SpaceX seeks customers for DragonLab ship (November 7, 2008)

  NASA chose SpaceX as one of two start-up commercial aerospace companies to provide vehicles for resupply missions. The $1.6 billion contract will allow SpaceX to provide a Falcon 9 Booster and a Dragon spacecraft for resupply missions to the International Space Station, beginning in 2010. Reuters: NASA gives space cargo contracts to start-up firms (December 23, 2008)

• Fast Facts

  1. Privately-owned startup company
  2. Known investment capital: $100 million
  3. Founder and CEO: Elon Musk
  4. Year established: 2002
  5. Industry: Aerospace design and manufacture
  6. HQ: Hawthorne, California
  7. Industry: Aerospace
  8. Products: Orbital rocket launch
  9. Employees: 400
  10. First successful launch: September 28, 2008MSNBC: Low-cost rocket finally gets to orbit

• Falcon

  SpaceX's Falcon Launch Vehicles are designed to transport satellites into orbit, reliably and at minimum cost.SpaceX: Falcon 1 Overview The line includes the Falcon 1—a 90-foot, two-stage launch vehicle—as well as the Falcon 9 and Falcon 9 Heavy, which are larger and have greater payload capacity.

• Falcon 1

  The Falcon 1 underwent a pair of test launches in 2005 and 2007, before its first mission on August 2, 2008. Although the August 2 attempt was derailed by a shutdown in the first stage engine, a successful entry into orbit was made on September 28, 2008.MSNBC: Low-cost rocket finally gets to orbit

• Background

  SpaceX is headed by entrepreneur Elon Musk, and the company's objective is to provide satellite and manned spacecraft launch capability with greater reliability and lower cost. The launch crew is located in the Marshall Islands and has 25 people, 6 in mission control. This small number, compared to companies with similar rockets, is part of cost reduction. Musk sees other space-launch services' high prices as supporting unnecessary bureaucracy.

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  Falcon 1 | X Prize | Virgin Galactic | SpaceShipTwo | Space Tourism | NASA | XCOR Aerospace | XCOR Lynx | Elon Musk | Richard Garriott

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