SpaceX

From a small warehouse to the dream of Mars

As a kid · Looking up at the stars
As a kid · Looking up at the stars
Why can't we live on another planet?
Elon had a dream about Mars since he was young.
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He asked the price · Got a huge shock
He asked the price · Got a huge shock
One rocket costs THIS much?!
Building one rocket could cost billions of dollars.
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Nobody believed him
Nobody believed him
A private company build rockets? No way!
The experts all said, "Forget it, it's too hard."
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2002 · Then we'll do it ourselves!
2002 · Then we'll do it ourselves!
If no one will, I will!
SpaceX was born — to build cheap, reusable rockets.
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A small California warehouse
A small California warehouse
A team of young engineers built rockets from scratch in a small warehouse.
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An important question
An important question
Planes fly again and again — why not rockets?
If rockets could be reused, costs could drop 100x.
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Why go so far?
Why go so far?
If something happens to Earth, humans need a second home.
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2006 · The first rocket is ready
2006 · The first rocket is ready
Ready for launch!
On a tropical island launch pad, Falcon 1 was ready to fly.
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2006 · First launch
2006 · First launch
5… 4… 3… 2… 1…
Everyone held their breath, watching the rocket rise.
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Just a few seconds in…
Just a few seconds in…
The rocket exploded. Failure number one.
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Tried again… and again
Tried again… and again
Boom again…
Second and third attempts — both exploded.
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One last chance
One last chance
We only have money for one more try.
Then… we can NOT fail!
The team was exhausted — but no one gave up.
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2008 · Try
2008 · Try
We did it!!
Falcon 1 finally made orbit — the first private company to do it.
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A Christmas gift from NASA
A Christmas gift from NASA
Here's a big contract for you!
NASA's $1.6 billion contract saved SpaceX.
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Make rockets land themselves
Make rockets land themselves
This sounds almost impossible…
Land a giant rocket backwards, standing upright.
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2015 · A day for the history books
2015 · A day for the history books
Falcon 9 landed vertically — a new chapter in space history.
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Dragon · A crewed spacecraft
Dragon · A crewed spacecraft
Wow, Earth is beautiful!
Dragon carries astronauts to the space station.
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2020 · Americans launch again
2020 · Americans launch again
For the first time in 9 years, Americans launched from US soil.
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Starship · Taller than the Statue of Liberty
Starship · Taller than the Statue of Liberty
The biggest rocket humans ever built!
The silver Starship — like a spaceship from sci-fi.
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Starlink · Internet for everyone
Starlink · Internet for everyone
Internet even in the desert!
Thousands of satellites bring internet to every corner of Earth.
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Mars mission · Officially begins
Mars mission · Officially begins
In the future, humans may live in Mars dome homes.
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Still testing, again and again
Still testing, again and again
Every explosion is a lesson.
Starship tests, learns, and tries again.
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Catching a rocket with "chopsticks"
Catching a rocket with "chopsticks"
Unbelievable…
Giant mechanical arms on the tower caught the returning rocket.
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You and the future
You and the future
Maybe one day, the first person on Mars — is you.
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