Starstruck (company)

Starstruck Inc. was a company cofounded by James Bennett and Phil Salin that attempted to perform low-cost orbital rocket launches using experimental, sea-launched hybrid rockets.[1] While a commercial failure, it is an important part of hybrid rocket history,[2] responsible for restarting commercial development of hybrid rockets.[3][4] One of its core leadership was former first Apple CEO Michael Scott. It was based in Redwood City, California.[5][1]

The company folded after three rockets were built and one was successfully launched to suborbital space. Several veterans of Starstruck founded the American Rocket Company (AMROC),[6] which also eventually failed. AMROC's intellectual property was acquired by SpaceDev.

Sources
  1. Jim Schefter. (May 1984) High-tech Rockets on the Cheap. Popular Science

Notes
  1. Cox, Patrick (January 1985). "Space Entrepreneurs". In Poole, Robert W., Jr.; Postrel, Virginia I. (eds.). Free Minds & Free Markets: Twenty-five Years of Reason. San Francisco: Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy (published 1993). p. 52. ISBN 0-936488-72-7. Retrieved 2020-12-09. Phil Salin ... a cofounder of StarStruck, uses this thought experiment to drive home a main point: A dramatic reduction in the cost of getting there is the key to developing space for human use.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link)
  2. Arif Karabeyoglu. (2008, May 09). Hybrid Rocket Propulsion for Future Space Launch. Aero/Astro 50th Year Anniversary. http://aa.stanford.edu/events/50thAnniversary/media/Karabeyoglu.pdf
  3. History of Hybrid Rockets. "History of hybrid rockets / Geschichte der Hybridraketen". Archived from the original on 2008-12-10. Retrieved 2008-10-17.
  4. "Hybrid Rockets". Hawkfeather.com. Retrieved 2010-04-30.
  5. June Morrall (March 27, 2007). "Hotels in Outer Space & Phil Salin & the Rocket Co. in RWC". Half Moon Bay Memories. Retrieved 2020-12-09.
  6. David P. Gump. (1990). Space Enterprise: Beyond NASA. Praeger Publishers, New York. pp 28-31.

See also

SeaLaunch


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