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the Dragon capsule, and it was a successful launch. The
capsule was put into a 155-mile-high orbit [250 km], where
it remained for a year before burning up in the atmosphere
while descending back to Earth.
A real version of the Dragon capsule, on the top of a
Falcon 9, launched in December 2010. Before the launch,
SpaceX announced that the capsule carried a secret cargo.
After the Dragon returned to Earth, landing safely in the
Pacific Ocean, SpaceX revealed that the cargo had consisted
of a wheel of cheese bolted onto the floor of the capsule.^292
The cheese was a tribute to the sketchThe Cheese Shop
performed by the British comedian group Monty Python.
The idea behind the sketch is that a man walks into a
cheese store where he patiently asks what types of cheese
the store sells. When the man has gone through all sorts of
cheese, it turns out that the store doesn’t have any cheese.
We now know SpaceX bought the last one. “Don’t take
yourself too seriously, or you’ll start believing your own
bullshit,” Elon said. So it’s clear that Elon has a high respect
for comedy, but he dislikes the general celebrity culture.
An anonymous celebrity wanted a Roadster for free in
exchange for promoting it, but Elon said no.58,156
After the second flight of Falcon 9, Elon made a state-
ment. “It proves that we didn’t just get lucky the first time
around,” he said. “Next year we expect four to five launches,
the year after that eight to ten, and the launch rate will
increase by 100 percent every year for the next four to five
years.”^50