What will the space industry look like in 2030? We asked 30 global leaders within the sector their predictions.

Space has been the subject of human interest and a quest for discovery for a long time. But what does its future – and our role in it – look like?

We have our own thoughts.

We believe that space will be communal, commercial and contested. People will return to the moon and set up a more permanent base. Space travel will be possible, with multiple providers enabling it. We will rely on connectivity from space to provide broadband and communications affordably to areas which have previously been off the grid. Countries will increasingly use space as a domain for armed services. And people will land on and explore Mars for the first time.

But this is just one view – and there are many others.

What do space industry leaders think the future holds?

30 Voices on 2030: The future of space brings together the different perspectives of 30 senior leaders from the space industry around the world – heads of agency, engineers, lawyers, entrepreneurs and politicians – who paint a very vivid, exciting and challenging vision of what we can expect.

In this report, we explore the potential of space to open up to new businesses and customers, create new products and services and speak to our sense of curiosity and desire to understand the world beyond our planet. Organisations across different industries – and not just traditional space industry players – that lack adaptability and imagination will be left behind.

30 Voices on 2030 webinar series

Part 1: Humans will live, work and holiday in space

We are yet to see space tourism take off, but astronauts travelling to and from the International Space Station has almost become routine in the 48 years since people last set foot on the moon. New players and latest developments are making space travel in the next ten years increasingly more likely.

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Part 2: Deep space exploration

As the space industry continues to make technological advancements in the coming decade, so will our ability to expand our horizons and more deeply explore the solar system, in particular the Moon, Mars and perhaps even further afield. 

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Part 3: Space business models

When space exploration first started, missions were predominantly government led. In recent years, however, many NewSpace companies have started building and operating hardware in space, while others leverage the data and services available. In the next ten years, we expect this to grow considerably.

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Part 4: Space data comes back to Earth

Data collected in space will continue to increase in value over the next decade as volume, variety, velocity and veracity increase. What are the opportunities for organisations on Earth to enhance their operations and become more predictive rather than reactive?

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Part 5: Sustainability in Space

Businesses are already putting sustainability at the forefront of what they do on Earth and in the years ahead the same will be applied to our activities in space, from space debris and the potential risks of opening up space travel and exploration to the militarisation of space.

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