Space milestone
Falcon 1: first privately funded liquid-fueled rocket to reach orbit
September 28, 2008
On 28 September 2008 the fourth Falcon 1 flight, carrying a mass simulator nicknamed "Ratsat", successfully placed its payload into low Earth orbit from Omelek. It was the first privately funded liquid-fueled rocket to reach orbit, following three consecutive failures on the previous flights. The milestone established SpaceX as a viable orbital launch provider.