I’m not being critical, just wondering how much to replace the lost hardware. Can Musk absorb repeated failures? Or are taxpayers footing the bill? Again, just wondering.
He's either the richest, or close to the richest, person in the world.
Look where he's putting HIS money, as opposed to Soros or Gates.
It was old hardware; newer stuff at site but not yet mounted. The program is TEST TO FAILURE - it is the same way Falcon was done. Failures are expected - its how everyone learns.
Musk raises or uses his own funds, plus SpaceX is likely profitable from all the government and private contracts.
Taxpayers foot the bill for all the entire Federal budget. Since NASA is part of the Government, it pays for NASA launches. So you could say that the NASA budget pays for Falcon launches. Which money recycles through to jobs, hardware purchases, outsourced contracts, and so on at SpaceX.