Commercial Space

The commercial space market, also known as the private space industry or NewSpace, is experiencing strong growth. This burgeoning sector encompasses activities such as satellite manufacturing, space tourism, rocket launches, satellite services and space exploration initiatives driven by private companies. Players like SpaceX and Blue Origin on the launch side, or Planet and Maxar with their in-orbit satellite constellations are revolutionizing the industry, making space more accessible and cost-effective. The demand for satellite internet, Earth observation, and space-based services has fueled investments and technological advancements. With the rise of reusable rockets, commercial crew missions, and ambitious plans for space mining and Mars colonization, the commercial space market is poised for exponential growth, promising exciting developments and opportunities into the future. 

News & Analysis

May 27, 2020
Weather Delays SpaceX Human Spaceflight Debut
NASA and SpaceX are retargeting launch of the crewed Demo-2 flight test for 3:22 p.m. EDT May 30 after dicey weather at Kennedy Space Center prompted a scrub 16 min. before a liftoff attempt on May 27.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 27, 2020
SpaceX To Evaluate Dimming Feature For Starlink
SpaceX plans to evaluate a new dimming feature called VisorSat for its growing global constellation of Starlink broadband connectivity satellites, whose disruptive brightness in the night sky has raised the ire of professional and amateur astronomers.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 26, 2020
Port Of Rotterdam Tests Ship Delivery By Drone
The Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands has performed its first unmanned air system delivery to a ship in a demonstration that could reduce pressures on the transport network around Europe’s largest seaport.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 25, 2020
SpaceX Aims For Starship Crew Flights by 2023
SpaceX is looking to shave development time for Starship crewed flights to less than half of the six years it has taken to get the Falcon 9-Dragon system ready to fly people for the first time.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 25, 2020
Virgin Orbit Investigating LauncherOne Demo Failure
Space company Virgin Orbit is reviewing telemetry data from the first LauncherOne launch vehicle orbital test flight attempt, which was terminated after an anomaly occurred shortly after launch May 25.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 27, 2020
Weather Delays SpaceX Human Spaceflight Debut
NASA and SpaceX are retargeting launch of the crewed Demo-2 flight test for 3:22 p.m. EDT May 30 after dicey weather at Kennedy Space Center prompted a scrub 16 min. before a liftoff attempt on May 27.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 27, 2020
SpaceX To Evaluate Dimming Feature For Starlink
SpaceX plans to evaluate a new dimming feature called VisorSat for its growing global constellation of Starlink broadband connectivity satellites, whose disruptive brightness in the night sky has raised the ire of professional and amateur astronomers.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 26, 2020
Port Of Rotterdam Tests Ship Delivery By Drone
The Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands has performed its first unmanned air system delivery to a ship in a demonstration that could reduce pressures on the transport network around Europe’s largest seaport.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 25, 2020
SpaceX Aims For Starship Crew Flights by 2023
SpaceX is looking to shave development time for Starship crewed flights to less than half of the six years it has taken to get the Falcon 9-Dragon system ready to fly people for the first time.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 25, 2020
Virgin Orbit Investigating LauncherOne Demo Failure
Space company Virgin Orbit is reviewing telemetry data from the first LauncherOne launch vehicle orbital test flight attempt, which was terminated after an anomaly occurred shortly after launch May 25.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 25, 2020
Starship Flight On Hold Pending Demo-2
Work on SpaceX’s prototype Starship spacecraft has eased up while the company focuses on launching its first people into orbit, says CEO Elon Musk. 
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 22, 2020
NASA Affirms May 27 For Demo-2 Launch
NASA completed a two-day Flight Readiness Review (FRR) for the Demo-2 test mission, confirming a launch attempt on May 27 for SpaceX’s first human spaceflight and NASA’s first launch of astronauts on a U.S. system since 2011.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 21, 2020
SDA Charts Flexible Approach To Tranche 0 Launch Services
Launch service companies could be given the discretion to decide the optimal launch plan to support the 30 satellites in Tranche 0 of the Space Development Agency’s future military surveillance and communications architecture in low Earth orbit, the agency said May 20.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report