When The Heavens Went On Sale

<p><b>'One of the most exciting tales of our time... It's the next tech frontier, and Vance turns it into a thriller' Walter Isaacson, author of <i>Steve Jobs</i><br><br>'Eloquent, expertly reported' Brad Stone, author of <i>The Everything Store</i><br>_______________<br><br>A momentous look at the private companies driving the revolutionary new space race, from the 3-million copy, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling </b><b>author of <i>Elon Musk</i></b><br><br>In 2008, Elon Musk's SpaceX became the first private company to build a low-cost rocket that could reach orbit. Suddenly Silicon Valley, not NASA, was the epicentre of the new Space Age.<br><br>Ashlee Vance follows four pioneering companies - Astra, Firefly, Planet Labs and Rocket Lab - as they race to control access to outer space. While the space tourism ambitions of billionaires such as Bezos and Branson make headlines, these under-the-radar companies are striving to monetise Earth's lower orbit; to connect, analyse and monitor everything on Earth.<br><br>With unprecedented access to private company headquarters, labs and top-secret launch locations - from the US to New Zealand, Ukraine to India - Vance presents a gripping account of private jets, communes, gun-toting bodyguards, drugs, espionage investigations and multimillionaires guzzling booze as their fortunes disappear.<br><br><b>This is the most pressing and controversial technology story of our time. Welcome to the new Wild West above the clouds.</b></p> <p><b>*An instant <i>New York Times</i> Bestseller*<br><br>'One of the most exciting tales of our time... It's the next tech frontier, and Vance turns it into a thriller' Walter Isaacson, author of <i>Steve Jobs</i><br><br>'Eloquent, expertly reported' Brad Stone, author of <i>The Everything Store</i><br>_______________<br><br>A momentous look at the private companies driving the revolutionary new space race, from the 3-million copy, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling </b><b>author of <i>Elon Musk</i></b><br><br>In 2008, Elon Musk's SpaceX became the first private company to build a low-cost rocket that could reach orbit. Suddenly Silicon Valley, not NASA, was the epicentre of the new Space Age.<br><br>Ashlee Vance follows four pioneering companies - Astra, Firefly, Planet Labs and Rocket Lab - as they race to control access to outer space. While the space tourism ambitions of billionaires such as Bezos and Branson make headlines, these under-the-radar companies are striving to monetise Earth's lower orbit; to connect, analyse and monitor everything on Earth.<br><br>With unprecedented access to private company headquarters, labs and top-secret launch locations - from the US to New Zealand, Ukraine to India - Vance presents a gripping account of private jets, communes, gun-toting bodyguards, drugs, espionage investigations and multimillionaires guzzling booze as their fortunes disappear.<br><br><b>This is the most pressing and controversial technology story of our time. Welcome to the new Wild West above the clouds.</b></p>