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> It's hard to see how the market can support so many small launch providers. The small- and tiny-sat market is expected to grow by a factor of four compared t
by qayxc 6y ago
> It's hard to see how the market can support so many small launch providers.
The small- and tiny-sat market is expected to grow by a factor of four compared to the previous decade [0].
Big launchers like Falcon 9 and especially Starship cannot easily service this market. Ride share has plenty of issues and projected launch costs of $2M for Starship are on the theoretical side of things right now.
SpaceX needs to set aside a considerable amount of their launch capabilities for internal purposes (i.e. Starlink) and with expected double-digit grow rates in the small-sat market, there's plenty of room for competition.
[0] https://smallsatnews.com/2020/07/24/an-analysis-of-prospects-for-the-small-satellite-market/ https://smallsatnews.com/2020/07/24/an-analysis-of-prospects...
- m4rtink 6y agoYeah, basically if you want a custom orbit and firm launch date (eq. no delays due to other payloads having issues on a rideshare) a dedicated small sat launcher makes sense. Still I'm thinking Starship once operational could service that as well, being full RLV. Like, just launch with couple tons of cubesats and as much fuel as possible, then deliver then to orbit as needed using you huge delta-v budget then go home. Rinse and repeat. You could theoretically even do inclination changes using the Starship aerodynamic surfaces if you were crazy enough. ;-) As you are effectively using up just fuel in Starship (+ some wear and tear) it might still be cheaper than dumping a complete small non-reusable rocket.