Home The space economy in 2030: A clash of titans and a shock of realities

GEAB July 2022

The monthly bulletin of LEAP (European Laboratory of Political Anticipation) - 15 Jul 2022

The space economy in 2030: A clash of titans and a shock of realities

Young, even infant, the space market has grown by 70% since 2010 and is expected to reach a trillion dollars in annual revenues by 2040.[1] One might think that the space economy would one day become normal, like the car economy, but that would be to navigate like a sorcerer’s apprentice. Three words sum up the world we live in: Space is Hard.[2] The same could be said for nuclear power, because we are navigating in the same level of technical complexity, where only good expertise and a good budget allow to survive. Is this a field reserved for titans then? Yes, but in contrast to nuclear power, there is still a door open to the democratisation of space and all the emerging companies that are entering will try to write the space of tomorrow by grabbing the ground left by the battle of the giants. They will all come up against the same ruthless reality though, and there will be a clash. 

Comments

To leave a comment sign up now
Contents

This September, NASA's Psyche spacecraft will take off from Cape Canaveral to study the asteroid with the same name and the metals littering its surface. Behind the science, there is [...]

The revolution in orbit access prices and the standardisation of satellite construction are enabling the advent of a new space economy. Space is becoming more democratic and is gradually following [...]

Between the desire for supremacy and the wish to use space as a catalyst for a new economy, the vision that nations have of their place in space is remarkably [...]

Related articles
GEAB
15 Apr 2025

Global seismic crisis: What if the earth’s crust rebelled?

#climate #earthquake #governance

The dread of the climate crisis could soon be replaced by that of a "global seismic crisis", i.e. a gradual increase in the number and severity of earthquakes. If we [...]

GEAB
15 Apr 2025

Ukraine, the cornerstone of Europe’s future defence architecture

#défense #Russia #trump #Ukraine #USA

At the crossroads of a Russian past, an American present and a European future, Ukraine, which for the last 3 years has been a testing ground for the wars of [...]

GEAB
15 Apr 2025

2030: The end of Europe’s savings cushion

#dollar #economy #EU #euro #finance #savings #tarrifs

Europe has long benefited from a powerful economic engine: the household savings. Built up over decades, this financial cushion, estimated at 35.5 trillion euros (against 14 trillion public debt), has [...]