Yearbook on Space Policy 2017

The “World Economic Situation and Prospects” report is the United Nation’s leading publication in the annual discussion of current economic trends and prospects. Its 2016 reporting painted a bleak picture, and the global economy looked to be held back by both slow growth and reduced international trade. However, 2017 has seen a turnaround, and it was estimated that global economic growth reached 3%, representing a large step up from the 2.4% of 2016 and also the greatest global growth rate since 2011. Furthermore, about two-thirds of countries have seen increased growth from the sluggishness which characterised 2016, and globally levels are expected to hold at 3% into 2019.

As Europe’s launch sector continues substantial development to grow more competitive in the global market, Arianespace’s Vega launcher—manufactured by ELV (a joint venture between the Italian Space Agency and Avio)—has launched a total of 12 times since 2012, all successfully. Over the reporting period in particular (including up to August 2018), Vega launched three times in 2017 and once in 2018. Looking to the future, and as part of overall efforts to increase the Vega’s competitiveness on the launch market, ESA and Avio have been developing since 2016 a new Small Spacecraft Mission System adaptor (SMSS), which can deliver cubesats and microsats up to 400 kg to orbit. In 2018, Arianespace secured four customers on the first SMSS, scheduled for 2019, including Spaceflight Inc. (American), ISIS (Dutch), and the Italian Sitael and D-Orbit. The SMSS is intended for one to two flights per year. Moreover, the P120 C engine under development by ArianeGroup (as of July 2017, the corporate name of Airbus Safran Launchers was changed to ArianeGroup) and Avio, intended for both the next-generation Vega C and Ariane 6, is to be produced in up to 35 units per year and “will provide scale meaningful enough to drive prices lower, according to Arianespace and Avio officials”. Lastly, with the Vega C still scheduled for its first flight in 2019, Avio is also developing a further launcher, known as Vega E (Evolution), expected for launch in 2024; ESA has additionally committed to the latter in a contract with Avio valued at 53 million €. According to SpaceNews.com, this reportedly represents only a “first tranche”.

On 27 December 2016, the Information Office of China’ State Council released the new version of the country’s 5-year policy guidelines for national space activities. Published in the form of a government White Paper, the document highlights the major developments of the past 5 years (2011–2015) and provides a comprehensive description of the programmatic intentions for the sector over the period 2016–2020.

The 12th ESPI Autumn Conference was held at the ESPI premises in Vienna on 27–28 September 2018 and had the theme of “Security in Outer Space: Rising Stakes for Civilian Space Programmes”.

The ecosystem of the space sector has shifted drastically over the past decades with new technical concepts and business endeavours building on a changing institutional and economic environment. Now a pillar of the modern economy and society, the global space infrastructure enables key services across vital sectors and directly supports public actions to address economic, societal, environmental and security issues at a national and global level. This ever-growing use of space-based data and services by a variety of public and private actors/users has created a virtually invisible dependence on space technologies, which closely relates to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). As the use of space applications becomes more pervasive, brings more benefits and becomes part of the business-as-usual routine, dependence on space infrastructure intensifies, which creates new vulnerabilities for the economy and society at large.

In the 60 years since the launch of the first satellite in 1957, the global space economy has grown tremendously. Space-based services now bring substantial socio-economic benefits to end-users, across numerous strategic domains and economic sectors. Simultaneously, the increasingly pervasive use of space-based services by governments, businesses and consumers has resulted in a growing dependence of society and economy on space infrastructure.

This section provides core data on ESA member states and their respective national-level space activities.