Eccentric Orbits
Eccentric Orbits by John Bloomby John Bloom
The most recommended of 4 business history books
Recommended as a fascinating, entertaining account of how Iridium's satellite network was built, though one reader notes it is business-heavy.
Recommended as a fascinating, entertaining account of how Iridium's satellite network was built, though one reader notes it is business-heavy.
8 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 8
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 8 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Entertaining, informative story of Iridium
“The story of how Iridium came to be and how difficult it was to keep Motorola from literally destroying the whole constellation is quite fascinating.”
Comment from 29 Jun 2026 in “RocketLab Acquires Iridium” “This kind of trivia can be discovered in the very interesting and entertaining book”
Comment from 28 Oct 2026 in “US agency approves Amazon Leo’s $11.5B acquisition of Globalstar” “Hugely informative and entertaining book!”
Comment from 30 Jun 2026 in “RocketLab Acquires Iridium” Among the best books recently read
“Easily one of the best books I've read in the last few years.”
Comment from 28 Oct 2026 in “US agency approves Amazon Leo’s $11.5B acquisition of Globalstar” “One of the best books I have read in recent years”
Comment from 29 Jun 2026 in “RocketLab Acquires Iridium” Strongly recommended to readers
“If you haven't read Eccentric Orbits: The Iridium Story you should.”
Comment from 15 Apr 2026 in “Amazon to Acquire Globalstar and Expand Amazon Leo Satellite Network” “Easily one of the best books I've read in the last few years.”
Comment from 28 Oct 2026 in “US agency approves Amazon Leo’s $11.5B acquisition of Globalstar” “One of the best books I have read in recent years”
Comment from 29 Jun 2026 in “RocketLab Acquires Iridium” - Comment from 30 Jun 2026 in “RocketLab Acquires Iridium”
Other business history books people recommend
The three most recommended other business history books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eccentric Orbitsby John BloomThis page | 8 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| The Man Who Solved the Marketby Gregory Zuckerman | 7 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
| Barbarians at the Gateby Bryan Burrough and John Helyar | 3 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
| More Money Than Godby Sebastian Mallaby | 2 | 1 | 67% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
8 of the 10 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Great book, one thing it missed is how these satellite constellations are also funded by the government”
“Easily one of the best books I've read in the last few years.”
“This kind of trivia can be discovered in the very interesting and entertaining book”
“is an amazing book. It's a business heavy book so probably more interesting to people trying to start business or do deals”
“Hugely informative and entertaining book!”
“The story of how Iridium came to be and how difficult it was to keep Motorola from literally destroying the whole constellation is quite fascinating.”
“One of the best books I have read in recent years”
“If you haven't read Eccentric Orbits: The Iridium Story you should.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.