Hello, Quartz Index readers!
Are tiny spaceships big again?
SpaceX originally took off flying a small rocket designed specifically to launch small satellites. But as the company’s no-nonsense operating chief, Gwynne Shotwell, said this week, “the market was just not there.” SpaceX’s small rocket was retired in favor of the larger Falcon 9 it uses today; the company’s reusability technology garners larger returns on a rocket that size. (Look for SpaceX to try and land another Falcon 9 in the early hours of August 14.)
But, in the seven years since SpaceX pivoted to its bigger rocket, the market for small satellites has only grown. The shrinking costs of making satellites and flying them to space have led to a plethora of new startups with orbital aspirations—they just need someone to take them there. A dozen companies are trying to perfect the best flexible, fast and cheap option to fly satellites weighing hundreds of kilograms or less.
But economies of scale still matter in business, and SpaceX and its fellow large-rocket flyers ULA have a plan to keep dominating: Stacking their rockets with tons of small satellites. SpaceX even has a partnership with a company called Spaceflight (we need better naming conventions in this industry), an orbital ride-sharing broker that pairs satellites and launch vehicles. The company even found a ride for a lunar-bound spacecraft on one of Elon Musk’s beloved Falcons.
So, does size matter when it comes to rockets? In the new world of space business, there is likely to be demand for many different ways to say “lift-off.”—Tim Fernholz
Correction: Last week’s email said that the commercial drone industry could potentially contribute $82 million to the US economy in the next decade. It should have said $82 billion.
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