Forget rockets. All you need to launch a satellite is a sled and a giant magnetic slingshot. Project leader Jim Fiske, an expert in magnetic levitation, has made a $500,000 deal with NASA for him to prove his idea is even plausible. As for the system's cost, its low power requirements would allow spy micro-satellites to be slung into orbit for $50,000, a small fraction of the current $5-million launch cost. Now that's worth NASA's time and money.