Falcon 9 ushered in the modern space economy – retiring it could leave the industry vulnerable
More than 50% of the nearly 330 spaceflights to low Earth orbit in 2025 were done on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Falcon 9 is much smaller than SpaceX’s flashy Starship rocket, but for the past 16 years it has been a reliable choice for launching satellites to orbit.
The Conversation ·