PRIVATE launch company is set for the first commercial flight of its Falcon 1 rocket next week.
Falcon 1 is a two-stage rocket powered by liquid oxygen and kerosene, which last September became the first privately built launcher to reach orbit. In next week鈥檚 launch the rocket will place the Malaysian Earth observation satellite RazakSAT into an almost equatorial orbit.
The launch represents a major step towards routine commercial operations for SpaceX, which was created in 2002 by PayPal founder Elon Musk with the aim of slashing the cost of access to space. The company鈥檚 heavy-lift Falcon 9 rocket is also due for launch later this year, as part of an agreement with NASA to demonstrate commercial cargo flights to the International Space Station.
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