Recently, Musk's SpaceX set another record, and his Dragon spacecraft with 4 private astronauts successfully completed docking with the International Space Station, setting a global record for civilians to board the space station for the first time. This time Musk can be described as a fierce profit, a round-trip ticket to sell for 55 million US dollars, equivalent to about 350 million yuan, and three of the passengers are rich, the other is a retired astronaut who is the commander of the spacecraft, so this time it made 1.05 billion yuan. Suddenly, Musk can be described as a double gain of fame and fortune, and the outside world is once again impressed by SpaceX.
This time, the Dragon spacecraft not only sent civilians to the space station for the first time, but also confirmed its own strength, that is, it has the full ability to become part of the International Space Station, and even play a role in replacing the Russian module. Therefore, the prospects of the Dragon spacecraft are good, and SpaceX is not to be underestimated, as a private space company, its achievements have exceeded that of many national space agencies. Whether it is a recyclable rocket or the famous "StarLink" program, it is at the forefront of the world, this time wearing a record again, is SpaceX really going to become a "space winner"?
Starlink, for example, plans to launch 42,000 satellites, which, while ambitious, will have a huge impact on astronomical observations and other countries. Today, all countries are scrambling to launch satellites, but the low-Earth orbit position is limited, if Musk really launches all 42,000 satellites, it will occupy low-Earth orbit, and other countries' satellites have no position at all. Now that there are already such signs, the number of "Starlinks" in low Earth orbit is extremely large, and it is difficult for countries to catch up with them, so is it really necessary to let SpaceX go?
How will the space landscape evolve as it breaks records one after another? Xiaobian believes that although SpaceX is strong, the "Starlink" plan may only be a "paper tiger", why do you say so? Although Musk has relied on recyclable rockets to reduce the cost of launch, it is still a large cost to launch so many satellites, according to statistics, it will launch about 50 satellites a week, and the launch cost will reach 25 million US dollars. At present, the revenue of "StarLink" is not enough to support these launches, so SpaceX's launches are mainly dependent on the United States.
In addition to getting investment from NASA, Musk also received investment from other financiers, and although spaceX's market value directly doubled, his cowhide may soon be blown. Because not all of the Starlink satellites can play a role, in the previous launches, 40 of the total of 49 satellites have been scrapped, coupled with the fact that the research on its Raptor engine has not progressed, it is likely to face bankruptcy. Musk is frantically cashing out, it seems that he intends to run at any time, so his fast travel may not necessarily go steadily and far, and there are still many variables in the future space pattern.
(Text/Xi Le)