American journalist Ashley Vance, the author of the famous biography of Elon Musk, devotes her new book to a fascinating topic - the beginning of the exploration of near space by private American companies. SpaceX has proven to the whole world: space programs are no longer the prerogative of powerful governments spending billions of dollars on the launch of one rocket. At the helm are now extraordinary engineers, visionary enthusiasts, space hippies and eccentric businessmen. Ashley Vance spent five years collecting materials and personally talking with the founders of four companies - Planet Labs, Rocket Lab, Astra and Firefly Aerospace - who are on par with Elon Musk bring the plots of science fiction films to life. A commune of engineers in Silicon Valley, a spaceport in New Zealand next to local tribes and rocket launches from the vast expanses of cold Alaska - the author talks about all this in his usual provocative and honest manner. The book will interest the widest range of readers. It shows how much the aerospace industry influences modern civilization, and also allows you to see the inner world of amazing people who open up new perspectives for our planet. The publishing design is preserved in PDF A4 format.