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A review by xcinnamonsugar
When the Heavens Went on Sale: The Misfits and Geniuses Racing to Put Space Within Reach by Ashlee Vance
funny
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
This book is an absolutely fascinating read for anyone with even a passing interest in space tech. And also a somewhat infuriating read when you realize just how aggressively the USA is willing to be to assert itself as THE arbiter of aerospace development worldwide.
The book focuses on 4 companies: Planet Labs, Rocket Lab, Astra and Firefly. Given that Vance has published another book exclusively on Elon Musk, most mentions of SpaceX in this book were focused on the firm and its tech rather than Musk.
I’ve been rooting for Rocket Lab for the past few months, mainly because of Peter Beck’s underdog story in the space race and how he seems like an all-around decent guy from his interviews (unlike pretty much every other space mogul). So it was a real treat to get this journalistic insight into Beck/Rocket Lab's origin story, and I’m an even bigger fan now.
I didn't care for Astra right from the start, and was completely unsurprised by the shitshow that ensued.
Also the USA did Max Polyakov SO dirty. It’s especially maddening after you learn how much leeway they gave the arrogant Kemp/Astra that just talked a big game but had hardly anything to show in the way of real gritty engineering progress. The US government basically bullied Polyakov into handing his company over on the flimsy pretext that he might be a Russian spy, and then shamelessly used the Ukrainian-developed turbopump technology he’d shared with them while declaring the rockets made from “100% American technology”. Not a good look.
The book focuses on 4 companies: Planet Labs, Rocket Lab, Astra and Firefly. Given that Vance has published another book exclusively on Elon Musk, most mentions of SpaceX in this book were focused on the firm and its tech rather than Musk.
I’ve been rooting for Rocket Lab for the past few months, mainly because of Peter Beck’s underdog story in the space race and how he seems like an all-around decent guy from his interviews (unlike pretty much every other space mogul). So it was a real treat to get this journalistic insight into Beck/Rocket Lab's origin story, and I’m an even bigger fan now.
I didn't care for Astra right from the start, and was completely unsurprised by the shitshow that ensued.
Also the USA did Max Polyakov SO dirty. It’s especially maddening after you learn how much leeway they gave the arrogant Kemp/Astra that just talked a big game but had hardly anything to show in the way of real gritty engineering progress. The US government basically bullied Polyakov into handing his company over on the flimsy pretext that he might be a Russian spy, and then shamelessly used the Ukrainian-developed turbopump technology he’d shared with them while declaring the rockets made from “100% American technology”. Not a good look.