Development of new space business areas from research to applications
Increasing use of advanced composites for space applications is foreseen as the market is expected to reach USD 2.75 Billion by 2030. To support this growth, space companies developing advanced space composites are highly engaged in research and development initiatives. In other technologies areas such as micro-launchers, companies are focussing on closing the gap between research and application: this is notably the case of the start-up Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) which signed an agreement with the German Aerospace Center Bremen to use the test infrastructure at DLR’s site in Lampoldshausen. This agreement was signed at the Space Tech Expo trade fair in Bremen, during which the Dutch space sector was also well represented. Another partnership that is expected to break new ground in the domain of space transportation is the multiple launch services agreement signed between Exotrail and Isar Aerospace: Isar Aerospace’s launch vehicle Spectrum will launch Exotrail’s spacevan™ vehicle on several launches to LEO and GTO orbits. But putting aside existing business areas, are new categories of space industries being foreseen in the latest news? The answer is yes as Mark Boggett, managing director of venture capital firm Seraphim Capital, invites us to consider the potential of data centers being created in space.
Spotlight on the ever-growing Earth Observation market
Due to the increasing use of satellite imagery for various commercial purposes, such as providing critical data for policy formulation and implementation, the market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11% from 2022-2028, according to a new report from UnivDatos Markets Insights. The growth of this market is also seeing more companies along the EO value chain enter into partnerships and agreement in order to enable fast and joint response to new market opportunities . This is notably the case of Rome–e-GEOS and Satellogic Inc. which announced an agreement that will grant e-GEOS non-exclusive, world-wide distribution rights for satellite data from the Satellogic Aleph-1 constellation of very-high resolution optical low-Earth-orbit satellites.