AIR International Magazine Commercial Space Edizione speciale

The modern world depends on satellites for many services, but a transformation has torn out the roots of how they are designed, built, launched, and managed.

Wealthy entrepreneurs have shaken the old order, creating a New Space age of commercial activity to accelerate the pace of change through services we all depend on. Gone are the old monopolies from established operators as disruptors such as Sir Richard Branson, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and others are replacing traditional government funding with a self-sustaining programme, providing access to space far cheaper than it has ever been before.

From space tourism to routinely hauling satellites and spacecraft into orbit, the New Space era of privately run companies has up ended the business practices of manufacturers and launch providers around the world. With launch costs going down, access to space is now easier for a wider range of companies providing services that power society today. And the revolution is extending beyond the practical benefits from communications, TV, navigation, and environmental monitoring. The goal of landing humans back on the Moon and using its natural resources to ensure a self-sustaining research base is now closer than ever through the international partnerships which underpin the commercialisation of space.

In this publication we learn about the existing order based on government-funded projects, track the start-up activities for space tourism, and follow the progress of entrepreneurs who have taken over the launch market for sending payloads into space. We also delve into the reasons why these innovators, using their own wealth, have been able to fast-track solutions to seemingly insoluble challenges and build rockets which can bring themselves back down for multiple re-uses.