--- title: "SpaceX Smashed the Record for Commercial Space Launches This Year" description: "SpaceX has shattered the record for commercial rocket launches in a year, at 20. That beats the prior record of 18 launches in a year — which it also set." date: "2018-12-16" modified: "2018-12-17" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/spacex-smashed-record-commercial-space-launches" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" tags: - "china" - "elon musk" - "SpaceX" - "tesla" --- # SpaceX Smashed the Record for Commercial Space Launches This Year ![SpaceX has shattered the record for commercial rocket launches in a year, at 20. That beats the prior record of 18 launches in a year — which it also set.]() *\Image: SpaceX\* ## Launch Box As humankind ventures farther up the Earth's gravity well, it's been a banner year for Elon Musk's commercial spaceflight venture SpaceX. Case in point: *Business Insider* [reports that]() SpaceX has shattered the record for commercial rocket launches in a year, at 20. That beats the prior record of 18 launches in a year — which was also set by SpaceX, in 2017. Before that, the figure stood at 16, set by United Launch Alliance in 2009. ## 21 Pilots SpaceX has one more launch scheduled for 2018 — a satellite called GPS Block IIIA, [which will improve]() location tracking services for the U.S. Air Force — bringing the company's total tally of launches to 21. It's worth noting, though, that the 21 launches falls short of [Musk's most optimistic prediction]() for the company in 2018: that it would launch more rockets than any country on Earth. That honor, *Business Insider* found, went to China, which has launched about 35 rockets this year. ## Starboy Musk has had a [tough year]() in the press, with [drama as his electric car company, Tesla, struggled]() to bring its Model 3 compact to market. But the launch record comes as a bright cap to a year — and just weeks after Tesla [reportedly managed to churn out]() 1,000 Model 3 vehicles per day. "Life cannot just be about solving one sad problem after another," Musk [tweeted]() earlier this year after launching a [Tesla Roadster into space](). "There need to be things that inspire you, that make you glad to wake up in the morning and be part of humanity. That is why we did it. We did for you." *An earlier version of this story referred to traveling "into" Earth's gravity well, when space travel actually entails going up the gravity well. It has been updated.* **READ MORE:** [Elon Musk beat a world record for rocket launches in 2018. Here's every history-making SpaceX mission of the year]() \[*Business Insider*\] ***More on SpaceX:** [Looks Like SpaceX Is One Step Closer to Launching Another Falcon Heavy]()* ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()