ASSESSMENTS

Space: The Increasingly Crowded Frontier

Mar 25, 2016 | 09:15 GMT

Cheaper launch options and wider access to them has brought numerous new players into what was once a relatively closed arena of competition.

German astronaut Alexander Gerst's selfie during a spacewalk in 2014 outside the International Space Station.

(ALEXANDER GERST/ESA via Getty Images)

Forecast Highlights

  • New powers will take to space as costs go down and the military and economic importance of space grows.
  • Iran, Japan, South Korea, North Korea and India will continue to advance their programs. Turkey, Brazil, Argentina and others will eventually initiate their own space programs.
  • As countries become increasingly reliant on space systems, they will pursue their own launch capabilities, no longer wishing to rely on traditional space powers for access.
  • Commercial motivations will outpace military applications, meaning space missions will be less dependent on military expenditures to be economically viable.

More countries and companies than ever can reach Earth orbit. Cheaper launch options and wider access to them has brought numerous new players into what was once a relatively closed arena of competition....

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