US Space Companies Make a Run at Europe
After years of investor malaise and memes about the region’s lack of innovation, investing in the EU is suddenly back in vogue.
Payload’s take on what you need to know about the news of the day.
After years of investor malaise and memes about the region’s lack of innovation, investing in the EU is suddenly back in vogue.
The Space Development Agency (SDA) announced last week it is pushing the launch of its Tranche 1 satellites until late summer due to system readiness and supply chain issues.
The number of new satellite constellation businesses has sharply declined over the past decade as the space market matures and new startups struggle to find angles to differentiate.
BlackSky launched its first Gen-3 Earth observation satellites aboard Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket yesterday, adding higher-resolution imaging to its data offerings.
The most exciting moment of Sunday’s Super Bowl was finally getting concrete direct-to-cell pricing numbers.
The MSS landscape is about to evolve rapidly as incumbents form new partnerships to ride the D2D wave while new entrants work to get access to the valuable MSS spectrum.
America’s success is SpaceX’s success. More than five out of every six US launches is a SpaceX mission, according to the report.
Payload is back with our SpaceX revenue breakdown. In 2024, we estimate SpaceX’s revenue reached $13.1B in 2024, up from $8.7B in 2023. Business line estimates:
The US launched 122 defense payloads in 2024, surging 184% YoY, according to data compiled by astronomer Jonathan McDowell. The upswing was driven by the National Reconnaissance Office’s deployment of 106 SpaceX and Northrop-built Starshield remote sensing recon satellites.
Based on publicly available data from 20 launches with published payload mass numbers over the past three years, dedicated customer LEO launches have averaged just 3,370 kg of payload, just 19% of total capacity.
In 2024, US (*ahem, SpaceX*) launch numbers grew, while China, Russia, and Europe plateaued.
The best and worst of space technology in 2024.