According to Euroconsult's latest report, Prospects for the Small Satellite Market, the industry is on the cusp of a major revolution for the space sector and overall space ecosystem, as more than 3,600 smallsats are expected to be launched over the next ten years, a significant increase from the previous decade.
The total market value of these satellites is anticipated to be $22 billion (manufacture and launch), a 76 percent increase over that of 2006-2015. This rate of growth is unprecedented for the space sector and will bring about fundamental changes as both new and established industry players attempt to increase their capabilities in order to gain market share.
Including all third-party and in-house manufacturers, approximately 200 organizations built a smallsat between 2006 and 2015; the coming decade shows a similar pattern. Smallsat suppliers are entering the industry to capitalize on demand with flexible COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) equipment, bringing down costs and development times. Larger integrators focused on larger missions do not necessarily have the capacity to create these smaller, nominally lower-cost solutions at a profit or have the platforms available to support small mission development.
In the next decade, launch services are expected to generate $5.3 billion, a 76 percent increase over the previous decade. Small-lift vehicles in development will add further specialized supply. Prices from Firefly, Rocket Lab and Virgin Galactic are not expected to undercut existing supply prices. However, with smallsat operators impacted by the launch bottleneck and affected by delays in ridesharing and the like, despite the higher price per kg, the benefit of quicker and dedicated access to space could be attractive for operators.
According to Adam Keith, who is the Managing Director of Euroconsult Canada as well as this report's editor, Earth Observation (EO) is projected to exhibit the strongest growth in terms of the number of units launched—some 2,100 are anticipated to reach orbit in the 2016 to 2015 timeframe. During this period alone, four companies are planning to launch more than 1,400 smallsats, those being Planet, Spire Global, BlackSky and Satellogic. He adds that SATCOM smallsats will increase significantly to nearly 800 in number during this time period, discounting SpaceX's STEAM constellation. With six constellations being planned, of those firms, OneWeb will comprise the bulk of those units.
To learn more, please visit www.euroconsult-ec.com/shop/home/82-smallsats.html
Prepare To Be Wow'd
Dates Set For The SmallSat Symposium—2017—
To assist in acquiring the knowledge and expertise to enter and/or continue the acquisition of technology and product to become a successful smallsat actor, Satnews Publishers is delighted to announce that the SmallSat Symposium workshops will be held on February 6, 2017, and the conference will be conducted from February 7 to February 8, 2017, at the Computer History Museum, which is located at 1401 North Shoreline Boulevard in Mountain View, California.
A veritable "Who's Who" of subject-matter experts have already committed to presentations during this impact-filled symposium:
- Chad Anderson, Managing Director Space Angels Network
- Jason Andrews, CEO Spaceflight Industries David A. Anhalt, Vice President and General Manager Iridium PRIME
- Chris Baugh, President NSR – Northern Sky Research
- Peter Beck, CEO & CTO Rocket Lab
- Dr. Sami BenAmor, Director of Marketing Thales Alenia Space
- John Booher, Partner Hogan Lovells
- Dr. Sean Casey, Managing Director Silicon Valley Space Center
- Carissa Christensen, Managing Partner The Tauri Group
- Craig Clark, Founder Clyde Space Ltd.
- Mike Collett, Founder and Managing Partner Promus Ventures
- James Crawford, Founder and CEO Orbital Insight
- Randy Culver, CEO AMERGINT Technologies
- Stuart Daughtridge, Senior VP Advanced Technology Kratos
- Dr. Lars Dyrud, CEO OmniEarth
- Dr. Shahin Farshchi, Partner Lux Capital
- Dr. Jenny Gautier, Director of Commercial Programs The Aerospace Corporation
- Dr. Steve Goldberg, CEO & Co-Founder Venrock
- David Hartshorn, Secretary General GVF – Global VSAT Forum
- Susan J. Irwin, President Irwin Communications, Inc.
- John P. Janka, Partner Latham & Watkins LLP
- Adam Keith, Managing Director Euroconsult Canada
- Debra Facktor Lepore, VP and GM of Strategic Operations Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp
- Tony Lin, Counsel, Washington, DC Hogan Lovells
- Dr. Clare Martin, Vice President of Programs Surrey Satellite Technology US
- Clayton Mowry, President Arianespace
- Carlos Niederstrasser, Business Development & Special Initiatives Orbital ATK
- Sunil Nagaraj, Vice President of Marketing and Communications Bessemer Venture Partners
- Dara A. Panahy, Partner Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy
- Will Pomerantz, Vice President for Special Projects Virgin Galactic
- Dr. Alex Saltman, Senior Vice President GeoOptics Inc.
- Randy S. Segal, Partner, Co-Lead Satellite Practice Hogan Lovells
- David Strobel, CEO and Program Manager (PM) Space Micro
- Chris Stott, Chairman & CEO (PM) ManSat
- Tom Stroup, President SIA – Satellite Industry Association
- Professor Sir Martin Sweeting, Founder and Executive Chairman Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd.
- Stig-Are Thrana, U.S. Sales Director and Head of Kongsberg Silicon Valley Office Kongsberg Satellite Services
- Dr. Joe Thurgood, Vice President Corporate Development and Marketing Hera Systems
- Dr. Marco Villa, President & COO Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems
- Tony Wilkey, Senior Vice President AvL Technologies
- Bruce Yost, Project Manager NASA Ames Research Center
- Louis Zacharilla, Director of Development Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI)
Bonus—the first 100 registrants will qualify for a $200 discount on the standard event admission… take advantage of this offer… don't dawdle… and register now at this direct link.
