Okay here we go. Private Space Exploration
Private space exploration is honestly all I’ve been doom-scrolling about for the last six months and I’m not even sorry.
I’m sitting here in my messy apartment outside DC—empty LaCroix cans everywhere, window cracked because the radiator is doing that hissing thing again—and every other notification on my phone is either another Starship test clip or Elon tweeting something unhinged at 3 a.m. my time. It feels personal now. Like I accidentally joined this giant group chat about the future and nobody gave me the rules.
Where Private Space Exploration Actually Started Feeling Real to Me Private Space Exploration
I still remember summer 2020 when I watched the Demo-2 Crew Dragon launch on my laptop in my parents’ basement. Sound was off because my mom was on a Zoom call. I cried anyway. Quiet, ugly cry. Thought “this is it, NASA is handing the keys to billionaires and we’re all screwed.” Fast-forward to 2026 and I’m refreshing Flight Club tracking like it’s fantasy football. I was wrong. Mostly.
The big three (okay fine, big four if you count Rocket Lab seriously now) are moving so fast it’s giving me whiplash.
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- SpaceX — obviously the 800-pound gorilla. Starship has already done multiple orbital attempts, caught the Super Heavy booster twice in 2025, and they’re talking point-to-point Earth cargo delivery like it’s Uber Eats but hypersonic. → latest SpaceX Starship updates
- Blue Origin — Jeff finally stopped being the butt of every late-night monologue. New Glenn flew successfully late last year and they’re undercutting ULA on national security launches. The BE-4 engine works. People are actually mad about it instead of memeing it. → Blue Origin New Glenn mission status
- Rocket Lab — these guys are the quiet killers. Electron is launching almost weekly now, Neutron is supposed to start flying this year, and they’re already grabbing a slice of the national-security pie. Peter Beck looks like he hasn’t slept since 2013 and I respect it. → Rocket Lab launch manifest
Innovations That Make My Brain Hurt (in a Good Way) Private Space Exploration
Reusable everything isn’t even news anymore—it’s table stakes. What’s actually melting my smooth American brain in 2026:
- In-orbit refueling — Starship tanker flights are happening. Like actual ship-to-ship propellant transfer. I watched the test footage on my phone while waiting for tacos and almost dropped my al pastor.
- Methalox engines everywhere — Raptor, BE-4, Archimedes (Rocket Lab), even Stoke Space is playing in that sandbox now. Kerosene is basically boomer fuel at this point.
- Massive satellite internet constellations — Starlink is at ~7,000 birds and actually profitable. Amazon’s Kuiper is finally launching batches. China has their version. The sky is getting crowded and I’m low-key anxious about Kessler syndrome every time I look up.
Anyway I tried explaining orbital refueling to my buddy at a bar last month and he just stared at me like I grew a second head. Fair.
The Embarrassing Personal Bit Private Space Exploration
I bought one share of [REDACTED space stock] at the absolute top in early 2021 because a YouTuber said “to the moon.” Lost like 60% of it. Still holding because sunk-cost fallacy is real and I’m weak. Every time Starship blows up (or succeeds) I feel it in my portfolio and also in my soul. It’s unhealthy. I know.
But also… watching that booster catch itself mid-air last November? I screamed alone in my living room so loud the neighbor texted “you good?” I was. I really was.
The Day the Scythers Came** *A true story from the archives of the …
So What Now Private Space Exploration
Private space exploration isn’t perfect. Prices are still insane for regular people, regulation fights are nasty, and some of these CEOs tweet like they’re auditioning for main character syndrome. Still. We went from “maybe we’ll get back to the Moon in 2028” to “we’re literally building cities on Mars and arguing about who pays for the bar on the Moon base.”
I don’t know if I’ll ever get to space. Probably not. But every time I see a streak across the sky that isn’t a plane, I get this dumb hopeful feeling in my chest like maybe my kids will.
What about you—any launches you’re hyped for this year? Drop it below, I’m refreshing anyway.
Catch you in orbit (or at least in low-Earth traffic). ✌️
