SpaceX will launch dozens of “Starlink” satellites

ON MAY 6TH SpaceX, a private rocketry firm founded by Elon Musk, an internet entrepreneur, celebrated its 17th birthday. Despite being old enough to drive, the firm is still occasionally described as a startup. In reality, its ability to slash the cost of rocketry has given it a bulging order book and made it a pillar of the satellite-launch market.But Mr Musk has not lost his appetite for adventure. On May 15th, assuming the weather holds, the firm will launch one of its Falcon rockets with an unusual payload. Instead of carrying another company’s satellites, it will be packed full of dozens of small satellites of SpaceX’s own design. They are prototypes for a project called Starlink, the intention of which is to deploy thousands of satellites in orbits close to Earth to provide internet access anywhere and everywhere on the surface of the planet—including to the estimated 3.5bn people who currently lack regular, high-quality connectivity.