|
Rocket maker Space X grabs nearly $500 million satellite contract June 16, 2010 -- Private space flight company Space X has landed a multi-million dollar deal to launch communications satellites in California. The announcement comes just two weeks after the successful test launch of the Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center. Space X will use its Falcon 9 rocket to send satellites made by Iridium Communications into orbit. The rockets will lift off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California between 2015 and 2017. Space X says the contract is worth 492 million dollars and is the largest commercial launch contract ever signed. The company hasn’t yet said how many launches the contract will include. NASA is planning to rely on the Falcon 9 and its partner spacecraft called Dragon, to re-supply the International Space Station starting in 2011. There are also plans to eventually use the Falcon 9 to carry astronauts into orbit as well. |
|
|