Why we built this
The cost of sending items to space has decreased by orders of magnitude with reusable rockets, and as a result, more companies are launching things into space.
The large number of new space companies popping up over the past few years and the fragmentation of the supply chain makes it difficult to see what different countries and companies are working on.
Before our product, there is no comprehensive solution for potential investors or governments to easily analyze the state of the industry.
The Space Industry is Progressively Growing
- Private sector equity investment in satellite infrastructure has more than tripled to $19.0bn in the last five years (2018-2022) from $5.7bn the previous five (2013-2018)
- The launch costs have declined from $16363/kg with the Space Shuttle (1981) to $1520/kg with the Falcon Heavy (2022) or $456.57/kg in inflation-adjusted numbers
- Private sector equity investment in launch has similarly more than tripled to $20.1bn in the last five years (2018-2022) from $6.4bn in the previous five
- Since 2016, the world has sent +879% more objects into space
What we do
Our Mission is to visualize the space industry for potential institutional investors in a digestible format.
Our product incorporates data from past and future launches with satellites in orbit, to create a dynamic and intuitive visualization for technical or non-technical users.
Product Features
- Geographic Summary: Navigate through world map function and zone in on satellites by a selected country
- Launch Summary: Overview of all launches and its associated rates, distribution by organization, prices, payloads & more
- Satellite Summary: Overview of all satellites and its associated contractors, purpose, launch vehicle, & more
- Company & Government Level Information: Launches & Satellite information for top participating organizations
Data
Find the most up-to-date launch and satellite data updated daily from our sources
How to use
Explore the Geographic, Launch, and Satellite summary pages
or use the Market Maps to look closer into a company or government organization.
Select a company or government organization
Potential Data Insights
- How much is being invested in the industry?
- What objects are currently orbiting the earth?
- Who owns these satellites?
- How frequently are satellites being launched?
- What is the lifespan of a satellite?
Understanding the Data
General
1st Year: The year of the first launch date(if there is multiple satellites or launches with the same name) it was launched into space
Launch and Rocket Information
# Launched: Count of rockets by name
Distinct Launches: Each launch is assigned a specific
Launch ID and while a launch may contain multiple rockets, there will be at least one rocket in each launch
Distinct Rocket Types: Each rocket has a name and we categorize each name as a specific rocket type
Launch Success Rate: This calculation takes the total number of launches classified as a success (excluding suborbital and failed launches) and divides it by the total number of launches
Launch Result: Next SpaceFlight categorizes each launch into success (spacecraft reaches its orbit successfully and completes its mission), suborbital (the spacecraft reaches outer space but does not reach escape velocity or the trajectory is incorrect), failure (the spacecraft launches but fails to reach outer space), partial failure (the spacecraft launches but fails another parameter), and prelaunch failure (the spacecraft does not launch and fails on the launchpad)
Launch Site: Location of the launchpadStages: The separate segments of a rocket that operate sequentially to propel the rocket into space. Each stage is jettisoned when its fuel is exhausted
Organization Name: This is the organization that is responsible for the launch of the rocket and is usually the owner
Price Per Launch: This is defined as the price for the rocket as defined by Next SpaceFlight, not the total cost of the launch including ancillary services, cost to rent out the launch site, and other operational costs
Successful Launches: The total number of launches that have a Launch Result of success (so excludes suborbital and failed launches)
Thrust: The force exerted by a rocket’s engines to propel it upward and overcome gravity, measured in kiloNewtons
Payload Information
# of Payloads: The number of cargo, satellite, or any other object carried by a rocket into space (regardless of weight)
Payload to LEO: The maximum payload capacity to low earth orbit for a space launch vehicle measured in dry mass in kilograms
Payload to GTO: The maximum payload capacity to geostationary transfer orbit for a space launch vehicle measured in dry mass in kilograms
Satellite Information
Active Satellites: Satellites that are in orbit and rotating the
Earth Count: The number of satellites with the exact same name
Distinct Satellites: Each satellite has a NORAD ID (NorthAmerican Aerospace Defense) catalogue number, which is used to identify it and we count each individual ID as a distinct satellite
Expected Lifespan: Expected lifespan provided by the UCSDatabase as defined as when a satellite reaches orbit to when it decays, which is sourced based on public information
Satellite Dry Mass: The weight of a satellite without fuel or propellant in kilograms
Satellite Life: The life of the satellite calculated based on the launch date to the date it decays per Space-Track Decayed
Satellites: Satellites that are no longer in orbit
Total Satellites: Total satellites that were ever in orbit including both active and decayed satellites
Orbital Information
Orbital Period: The time it takes for a satellite to complete one full orbit around
Earth Degree Inclination: The angle between a satellite’s orbital plane and the Earth’s equator, typically measured in degrees
Perigee: The point in a satellite’s orbit where it is closest to
Earth Apogee: The point in a satellite’s orbit where it is furthest from Earth
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Marc Semonick
Vanesa Lee
Sean Lo
Kevin Ng
