Friction between the tank's aluminum liner and carbon overwrap ignited a towering inferno that engulfed the rocket, the launch pad, and a $200 million satellite owned by Israeli firm Spacecom. It was SpaceX's second disaster in 14 months—preceded by the explosion of a Falcon 9 heading to the International Space Station in June of 2015.

But far be it from Spacecom to get scared off by a little fire and brimstone. According to a Hebrew-language press release published last week, the company will attempt to launch another satellite atop a reusable Falcon 9 rocket in 2019—a freebie to make up for the first kablooie. And after that, they've signed up for another SpaceX launch in 2020.

Somehow, it seems, SpaceX has restored confidence in its customers after its failures in 2015 and 2016. This year, it has launched 15 missions, reusing three of its boosters. On that string of successes, Spacecom is returning to SpaceX's launch manifest along with an array of customers lining up for dramatically low prices—and the opportunity to sign up for an even cheaper recycled booster launch. The value proposition is even appealing to that most cagey of customers: the United States military.