SpaceX

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This article is about the rocket manufacturer. For the British art gallery, see Spacex
(art gallery).
"Space Exploration Technologies" redirects here. For the general topics, see Space
exploration and Space technology.
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American aerospace
manufacturer and space transportation services company headquartered in Hawthorne,
California. It was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation
costs to enable the colonization of Mars.[9][10][11] SpaceX has developed several launch vehicles, as
well as the Dragon cargo spacecraft and the Starlink satellite constellation (providing internet
access), and has flown humans to the International Space Station on the SpaceX Dragon 2.
SpaceX's achievements include the first privately funded liquid-propellant rocket to reach orbit
(Falcon 1 in 2008),[12] the first private company to successfully launch, orbit, and recover a
spacecraft (Dragon in 2010), the first private company to send a spacecraft to the International
Space Station (Dragon in 2012),[13] the first vertical take-off and vertical propulsive landing for an
orbital rocket (Falcon 9 in 2015), the first reuse of an orbital rocket (Falcon 9 in 2017), the first to
launch a private spacecraft into orbit around the Sun (Falcon Heavy's payload of a Tesla
Roadster in 2018), and the first private company to send astronauts to orbit and to
the International Space Station (SpaceX Crew Dragon Demo-2 and SpaceX Crew-1 missions in
2020).[14] As of 31 December 2020, SpaceX has flown 20 [15][16] cargo resupply missions to the
International Space Station (ISS) under a partnership with NASA,[17] as well as an uncrewed
demonstration flight of the human-rated Dragon 2 spacecraft (Crew Dragon Demo-1) on 2 March
2019, and the first crewed Dragon 2 flight on 30 May 2020. [14]
In December 2015, a Falcon 9 accomplished a propulsive vertical landing. This was the first such
achievement by a rocket for orbital spaceflight.[18] In April 2016, with the launch of SpaceX CRS-8,
SpaceX successfully vertically landed the first stage on an ocean drone ship landing platform.[19] In
May 2016, in another first, SpaceX again landed the first stage, but during a significantly more
energetic geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) mission.[20] In March 2017, SpaceX became the first
to successfully re-launch and land the first stage of an orbital rocket. [21] In January 2020, with the
third launch of the Starlink project, SpaceX became the largest commercial satellite constellation
operator in the world.[22][23]
In September 2016, Musk unveiled the Interplanetary Transport System — subsequently
renamed Starship — a privately funded launch system to develop spaceflight technology for use
in crewed interplanetary spaceflight. In 2017, Musk unveiled an updated configuration of the
system which is intended to handle interplanetary missions plus become the primary SpaceX
orbital vehicle after the early 2020s, as SpaceX has announced it intends to eventually replace its
existing Falcon 9 launch vehicles and Dragon space capsule fleet with Starship, even in the
Earth-orbit satellite delivery market.[24][25][26]:24:50–27:05 Starship is planned to be fully reusable and will be
the largest rocket ever on its debut, scheduled for the early 2020s. [27][28]
In 2001, Elon Musk conceptualized Mars Oasis, a project to land a miniature
experimental greenhouse and grow plants on Mars. He announced that the project would be "the
furthest that life's ever traveled" in an attempt to regain public interest in space exploration and
increase the budget of NASA.[29][30][31][32] Musk tried to purchase cheap rockets from Russia but
returned empty-handed after failing to find rockets for an affordable price. [33][34]
On the flight home, Musk realized that he could start a company that could build the affordable
rockets he needed.[34] According to early Tesla and SpaceX investor Steve Jurvetson,[35] Musk
calculated that the raw materials for building a rocket were only 3% of the sales price of a rocket
at the time. By applying vertical integration,[33] producing around 85% of launch hardware in-
house,[36][37] and the modular approach of modern software engineering, Musk believed SpaceX
could cut launch price by a factor of ten and still enjoy a 70% gross margin.[38]
In early 2002, Musk started to look for staff for his new space company, soon to be named
SpaceX. Musk approached rocket engineer Tom Mueller (later SpaceX's CTO of propulsion), and
invited him to become his business partner. Mueller agreed to work for Musk, and thus SpaceX
was born.[39] SpaceX was first headquartered in a warehouse in El Segundo, California. The
company grew rapidly, from 160 employees in November 2005 to 8,000 in May 2020, when COO
Gwynne Shotwell said she did not expect the company to grow much more to bring Starlink
online.[8] In 2016, Musk gave a speech at the International Astronautical Congress, where he
explained that the U.S. government regulates rocket technology as an "advanced weapon
technology", making it difficult to hire non-Americans. [40]
As of March 2018, SpaceX had over 100 launches on its manifest representing about US$12
billion in contract revenue.[41] The contracts included both commercial
and government (NASA/DOD) customers.[42] In late 2013, space industry media quoted Musk's
comments on SpaceX "forcing... increased competitiveness in the launch industry", its major
competitors in the commercial comsat launch market being Arianespace, United Launch
Alliance (ULA), and International Launch Services (ILS).[43] At the same time, Musk also said that
the increased competition would "be a good thing for the future of space". Currently, SpaceX is
the leading global commercial launch provider measured by manifested launches. [44]
On 30 May 2020, SpaceX successfully launched two NASA astronauts (Doug Hurley and Bob
Behnken) into orbit on a Crew Dragon spacecraft during Crew Dragon Demo-2, making SpaceX
the first private company to send astronauts to the International Space Station and marking the
first crewed launch from American soil in 9 years.[45][46] The mission launched from Kennedy Space
Center Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.[47] Crew Dragon
Demo-2 successfully docked with the International Space Station on 31 May 2020.[48] Due to
the COVID-19 pandemic happening at the same time, proper quarantine procedures (many of
which were already in use by NASA decades before the 2020 pandemic) were taken to prevent
the astronauts from bringing COVID-19 aboard the ISS.[49][50]

Goals[edit]

Falcon Heavy Rocket on Launch Pad 39A in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Musk has stated that one of his goals is to decrease the cost and improve the reliability of access
to space, ultimately by a factor of ten.[51] CEO Elon Musk said: "I believe US$500 per pound
(US$1100/kg) or less is very achievable". [52] Musk has also stated that he wishes to make space
travel available for "almost anyone".[53]
A major goal of SpaceX has been to develop a rapidly reusable launch system. As of
March 2013, the publicly announced aspects of this technology development effort include an
active test campaign of the low-altitude, low-velocity Grasshopper flight test vehicle,[54][55][56] and a
high-altitude, high-speed Falcon 9 post-mission booster return test campaign. In 2015, SpaceX
successfully landed the first orbital rocket stage on 21 December 2015.
In 2017, SpaceX formed a subsidiary, The Boring Company,[57] and began work to construct a
short test tunnel on and adjacent to the SpaceX headquarters and manufacturing facility, utilizing
a small number of SpaceX employees,[58] which was completed in May 2018, [59][60] and opened to
the public in December 2018.[61] During 2018, The Boring Company was spun out into a
separate corporate entity with 6% of the equity going to SpaceX, less than 10% to early
employees, and the remainder of the equity to Elon Musk.[61]
At the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) of 2016, Musk announced his plans to build
large spaceships to reach Mars.[62] Using the Starship, Musk planned to send at least two
uncrewed cargo ships to Mars in 2022. The first missions would be used to seek out sources
of water and build a propellant plant. Musk also planned to fly four additional ships to Mars in
2024 including the first people. From there, additional missions would work to establish a Mars
colony.[10][63] These goals, however, are facing delays.[64]
Musk's advocacy for the long-term settlement of Mars goes far beyond what SpaceX projects to
build;[65][66][67] successful colonization of Mars would ultimately involve many more economic actors
— whether individuals, companies, or governments — to facilitate the growth of the human
presence on Mars over many decades.[68][69][70]

Achievements[edit]
Major achievements of SpaceX are in the reuse of orbital-class launch vehicles and cost
reduction in the space launch industry. Most notable of these being the continued landings and
relaunches of the first stage of Falcon 9. As of December 2020, SpaceX has used two separate
first-stage boosters, B1049 and B1051, seven times each.[71] SpaceX is defined as a private space
company and thus its achievements can also be counted as firsts by a private company.
Achievements of SpaceX in chronological order include: [72][unreliable source?]

Accidents[edit]
In March 2013, a Dragon spacecraft in orbit developed issues with its thrusters that limited its
control capabilities. SpaceX engineers were able to remotely clear the blockages within a short
period, and the spacecraft was able to successfully complete its mission to and from
the International Space Station.
In late June 2015, CRS-7 launched a Cargo Dragon atop a Falcon 9 to resupply the International
Space Station. All telemetry readings were nominal until 2 minutes and 19 seconds into the flight
when a loss of helium pressure was detected and a cloud of vapor appeared outside the second
stage. A few seconds after this, the second stage exploded. The first stage continued to fly for a
few seconds before disintegrating due to aerodynamic forces. The capsule was thrown off and
survived the explosion, transmitting data until it was destroyed on impact. [80] Later it was revealed
that the capsule could have landed intact if it had software to deploy its parachutes in case of a
launch mishap.[81] The problem was discovered to be a failed 2-foot-long steel strut purchased
from a supplier [82] to hold a helium pressure vessel that broke free due to the force
of acceleration.[83] This caused a breach and allowed high-pressure helium to escape into the low-
pressure propellant tank, causing the failure. The Dragon software issue was also fixed in
addition to an analysis of the entire program in order to ensure proper abort mechanisms are in
place for future rockets and their payload.[84]
In early September 2016, a Falcon 9 exploded during a propellant fill operation for a standard
pre-launch static fire test.[85][86] The payload, the Amos-6 communications satellite valued at
US$200 million, was destroyed. [87] Musk described the event as the "most difficult and complex
failure" in SpaceX's history; SpaceX reviewed nearly 3,000 channels of telemetry and video data
covering a period of 35–55 milliseconds for the postmortem. [88] Musk reported that the explosion
was caused by the liquid oxygen that is used as propellant turning so cold that it solidified and
ignited with carbon composite helium vessels.[89] Though not considered an unsuccessful flight,
the rocket explosion sent the company into a four-month launch hiatus while it worked out what
went wrong. SpaceX returned to flight in January 2017. [90]
On 28 June 2019, SpaceX announced that it had lost contact with three of the
60 satellites making up the Starlink mega constellation. The dysfunctional satellites' orbits are
expected to slowly decay until they disintegrate in the atmosphere.[91] However, the rate of failure
for satellites in mega-constellations consisting of thousands of satellites has raised concerns that
these constellations could litter the Earth's lower orbit, with serious detrimental consequences for
future space flights.[92]

Ownership, funding, and valuation[edit]

In August 2008, SpaceX accepted a US$20 million investment from Founders Fund.[93] In early
2012, approximately two-thirds of the company stock was owned by its founder [94] and his 70
million shares were then estimated to be worth US$875 million on private markets,[95] which
roughly valued SpaceX at US$1.3 billion as of February 2012. [96] After the COTS 2+ flight in May
2012, the company private equity valuation nearly doubled to US$2.4 billion or US$20/share. [97][98]
By May 2012, — ten years after founding—SpaceX had operated on total funding of
approximately US$1 billion over its first decade of operation. Of this, private equity provided
approximately US$200 million with Musk investing approximately US$100 million and other
investors (Founders Fund, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, etc.) having put in about US$100 million.
[99]
 The remainder had come from progress payments on long-term launch contracts and
development contracts, as working capital, not equity.
In January 2015, SpaceX raised US$1 billion in funding from Google and Fidelity, in exchange for
8.33% of the company, establishing the company valuation at approximately US$12 billion.
Google and Fidelity joined prior investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Founders Fund, Valor Equity
Partners and Capricorn Investment Group. [100][101] In July 2017, the Company raised US$350 million
for a valuation of US$21 billion.[102]
Congressional testimony by SpaceX in 2017 suggested that the NASA Space Act
Agreement process of "setting only a high-level requirement for cargo transport to the space
station [while] leaving the details to industry" had allowed SpaceX to design and develop the
Falcon 9 rocket on its own at a substantially lower cost. According to NASA's own independently
verified numbers, SpaceX's total development cost for both the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 rockets
was estimated at approximately US$390 million. In 2011, NASA estimated that it would have cost
the agency about US$4 billion to develop a rocket like the Falcon 9 booster based upon NASA's
traditional contracting processes, about ten times more. [103]
By March 2018, SpaceX had contracts for 100 launch missions, and each of those contracts
provides down payments at contract signing, plus many are paying progress payments as launch
vehicle components are built in advance of mission launch, driven in part by US accounting rules
for recognizing long-term revenue.[42]

Successful SpaceX launches by year[104]

SpaceX raised a total of US$1.33 billion of capital across three funding rounds in 2019. [105]
In April 2019, the Wall Street Journal reported the company was raising US$500 million in
funding.[106] In May 2019, SpaceNews reported SpaceX "raised US$1.022 billion" the day after
SpaceX launched 60 satellites towards their 12,000 satellite plan named Starlink broadband
constellation.[107][108] By 31 May 2019, the valuation of SpaceX had risen to US$33.3 billion. [109] In
June 2019, SpaceX began a raise of US$300 million, most of it from the Ontario Teachers'
Pension Plan, which then had some US$191 billion in assets under management. [110][needs update]
As of February 2020, SpaceX was raising an additional amount of about US$250 million through
equity stock offerings. In May 2020, its valuation reached US$36 billion. [111] On 19 August 2020,
after having had finished a US$1.9 billion funding round, one of the largest single fundraising
pushes by any privately held company, SpaceX's valuation increased to US$46 billion. [112][113]
Since the founding of SpaceX in 2002, the company has developed three families of rocket
engines — Merlin and the retired Kestrel for launch vehicle propulsion, and the Draco control
thrusters. SpaceX is currently developing one new rocket engine: the Raptor. SpaceX is currently
the world's most prolific producer of liquid fuel rocket engines. [123] Merlin is a family of rocket
engines developed by SpaceX for use on their launch vehicles. Merlin engines use liquid
oxygen (LOX) and RP-1 as propellants in a gas-generator power cycle. The Merlin engine was
originally designed for sea recovery and reuse. The injector at the heart of Merlin is of
the pintle type that was first used in the Apollo Program for the lunar module landing engine.
Propellants are fed via a single shaft, dual impeller turbo-pump. Kestrel is a LOX/RP-1 pressure-
fed rocket engine and was used as the Falcon 1 rocket's second stage main engine. It is built
around the same pintle architecture as SpaceX's Merlin engine but does not have a turbo-pump,
and is fed only by tank pressure. Its nozzle is ablatively cooled in the chamber and throat, is
also radiatively cooled, and is fabricated from a high strength niobium alloy. Both names for
the Merlin and Kestrel engines are derived from species of North American falcons: the American
kestrel and the merlin.[124]
Draco engines are hypergolic liquid-propellant rocket engines that utilize monomethyl
hydrazine fuel and nitrogen tetroxide oxidizer. Each Draco thruster generates 400 N (90 lbf) of
thrust.[125] They are used as reaction control system (RCS) thrusters on the Dragon spacecraft.[126]
SuperDraco engines are a much more powerful version of the Draco thrusters, which were
initially meant to be used as landing and launch escape system engines on Dragon 2. The
concept of using retro-rockets for landing was scrapped in 2017 when it was decided to perform a
traditional parachute descent and splashdown at sea.[127] Raptor is a new family of methane-
fueled full-flow staged combustion cycle engines to be used in its future Starship launch system.
[128]
 Development versions were test-fired in late 2016. [129] On 3 April 2019, SpaceX conducted a
successful static fire test in Texas on its Starhopper vehicle, which ignited the engine while the
vehicle remained tethered to the ground. [130] On 25 July 2019, SpaceX conducted a successful test
hop of 20 meters of its Starhopper.[131] On 28 August 2019, Starhopper conducted a successful
test hop of 150 meters.[132]