SpaceX Will Allow Users To Book Rocket Launch 'Rideshare' Online For $1 Million

SpaceX has launched a new web-based tool that can help users rideshare its Falcon 9 rocket launches. The company wants to address the market of small satellite launch customers who cannot afford a full-scale rocket launch, which costs around $60 million.

If you don’t want a full-scale rocket launch for your satellite, you can simply "rideshare" a SpaceX rocket from the SpaceX website – just like you currently book an UberPool.

The new tool, which the company is calling the Smallsat rideshare program, starts from around $1 million for payloads weighing around 200 Kg (440 lbs). It will cost $5 for every additional Kilo.

The selection tool allows users to choose the orbit they want their satellite/space object in – sun-synchronous, low earth or polar orbit and the date you want it launch. The earliest launch date starts in June 2020.

Once you input the total mass of the object you want to be launched in space, you will get a cost estimate.

SpaceX has customized launch options for consumers and lets them choose between a 15-inch and 24-inch launch vehicle port. A customer can even choose the specific rocket on which their satellite would be launched. The company also allows users to use add-on options such as port adapters, which will range from the standard size that SpaceX uses to using one designed by the customer.

The satellite can also be insured to a value of up to $2 million.

Once the user selects all the options, they will have to confirm that they are not restricted from such launches under the International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) norms of the U.S. government.

A customer can actually book launch by simply using a credit card for making the $5,000 down payment and agreeing to pay the rest in three installments.

The largest installment has to be paid within five days of SpaceX accepting a "rideshare" request.

Who knew that just around 50 years from the first space rocket launch, you would be able to book a rocket ride for your satellite from your PC and pay using your credit card.