How the Us Space Industry Became Dependent on Spacex

Spacex is valued at Around $ 400 billion and is critical for us space access, but it wasnys the powerhouse that it is today.

Elon Musk Founded Spacex in 2002. Using money that he made from the salary of paypal, musk and his new company developed their first Rocket, the falcon 1, to challenge existing launch provides.

“There was actually a lot of startup aerospace companies looking to take on this market. Boeing and Lockheed Rockt launch capacity to one company, and they were charging the government Hindreds of Millions of Dollars to Launch Satellites, “said lori garver, a formmer deputy administrator at nasa.

In 2003, Musk Paraded Falcon 1 Around the Streets of Washington Having to Attction of Government agencies and the Multi-Million Dollar Contracts That They Offered. It worked, and in 2004, spacex secured a more million dollars from the defense advanced research projects agency, or darpa, and the us Air Force to Further Develops Rockets.

Despite the government support, the company struggled. Its first three launches of the falcon 1 failed to reach orbit.

“Nasa, and specificly the initial commercial cargo contract, is what saved the company when it was on the brink of bankruptcy,” Said Chris Quilty, PRESIDENT and CO-CO-CO-CO-CEO OF Quilty Space, A Space-focused research firm.

Nasa Awarded the $ 1.6 billion Contract, Known as Commercial Resupply Services to Spacex in 2008, Just Months after the first successful flight of the Falcon Its new Rockt, The Falcon 9, Along with its Dragon Capsule to Ferry Cargo and Supplies to the International Space Station over the course of 12 missions. In 2014, spacex won another nasa contrast worth $ 2.6 billion to develop and operate vehicles to ferry astronauts to and from the international space station.

Today, Spacex Dominates Large Parts of the Space Market from Launch to Satellites. In 2024, spacex conducted a record-Breaking 134 Orbital Launches, More Than Double the Amount of Launches Done by the Next Most Most Process Launch Provider, The China Aerospace Science and Technology Co. According to Science and Technology Consulting Firm Brycete. These 134 launches account for 83% of all spacecraft launched last year. According to a July report by bloomberg, spacex was valued at $ 400 billion.

Spacex’s Dragon Capsule and Falcon 9 Rockt are the primary meanings by which nasa launches astronauts and supplies to the international space station. The company’s starlink satellites have become indispensable for providing internet access to remote are as well as to us allies during wartim. The company’s starship Rockt, Thought Still in Testing, is also key to the US plan to return to the moon. Spacex is also building a network of spy satellites for the us government called starshield as part of a $ 1.8 billion contract. Even competitors including amazon and onweeb have launched their satellites on spacex rockets.

“The ecosystem of space is changed by, really it’s spacex,” Garver said. “The lower cost of access to space is doing what we had degremed of. It is built up a whole communication of companys Around the world that now has been access to space.”

Watch the video to find out more.