Next stage ignites in the rocket biz

[n2doc]

You'd expect SpaceX's founder, Elon Musk, to be happy about winning a $492 million contract from Iridium to launch 72 of its next-generation telecommunication satellites, in what he called "the biggest commercial launch deal in history."

"We won a competition against the rest of the world," the rocket company's 38-year-old CEO said today during a teleconference with journalists.

But Matt Desch, Iridium's CEO, sounds just as happy with the deal. "This is a totally new price point that hasn't been available in our industry," he told me. "I think in a couple of years this is going to look like the deal of the century."

It's beginning to look as if the successful maiden flight of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, just 12 days ago, marked the debut of more than just a launch vehicle: It may represent a dramatic turning point for the whole rocket business. Here are three indicators from the past few days:

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http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/06/16/4518181-next-stage-ignites-in-the-rocket-biz