The Future of the UK Space Industry

The UK space industry is one of the fastest growing sectors in UK and its revenue is also expected to have tripled in size since 2021. It generates an annual income of more than 14 billion and supports more than 42,000 jobs across the country. UK space travel has also gained immense popularity among other national and international space missions, which are undertaken to study space and observe wildlife. There are many space flight simulator games available on the Internet that enables people to dream of becoming space pilots or explorers.

There are many satellites and telescopes across the globe that contribute to our knowledge about space and this contributes greatly to the knowledge and use of the UK space industry. Satellites monitor space weather conditions, space debris and provide valuable information about our planet. These satellites are also used for communication purposes. There are a number of industries that derive a significant part of their revenue from satellite and space research and development, launches and utilization of space-related technologies.

A major portion of the UK space industry's revenue is obtained through the use of space satellites. Satellite services send and receive data, images, and other useful information from space and provide it to earth subscribers using various communications technologies. This provides a means for different organizations such as airlines, hospitals, mining companies, government departments, petroleum exploration and surveying firms etc to monitor their location, environment, and assets. Some satellite services even provide live feeds to earth from space, enabling users to view the Earth, space and skies at all times. UK satellite navigation system and networking satellites are also extensively used by the civil aviation industry for flight planning, monitoring and controlling airways.

Space flight is a major industry in UK and space related technologies are used in various aspects of the industry. The civil and military sectors utilize this sector for both national and international applications. Many of the components of the Indian Rakus and Chinese Y-8 unmanned aerial vehicles (UUV's) are procured from the UK for use in the countries. India is also in the process of manufacturing its own reusable missiles which could one day replace the UAVs. Some components of Chinese JLVs and VAV are also procured by the UK industry for use in the civilian sector.

The UK space industry must continue to develop effective plans and strategies to cope with the growing requirements of the industry. It must continue to invest in R&D and try to close the gap between what is available on earth and what is being made on the moon or space. Aims and ambitions must continue to push forward in order to meet the ever growing requirements of the industry. Aims and aspirations include meeting the growing needs of research and development departments which have a large budget for scientific research. These budgets are increasingly becoming constricted due to the economic downturn.

The UK space industry must also develop new ways to reduce costs in order to keep down the prices of accessing space and keep up with other users who are increasing their budgets drastically. Cutting down on costs could be easier said than done as the industry already has its share of subcontractors to keep costs under control. Subcontractors have access to the technology and components which the primary producers do not have. This allows them to cut down costs significantly.

If the UK space industry can develop a long term and sustainable growth strategy it could potentially create millions of jobs in the UK and around the world. Its future human resources would include the many scientists who are looking into space to help mankind learn more about life on earth. Scientists need humans to study the effects of space on our health and how we can live longer, healthier lives without having to return to the effects of Earth soil on us. If the UK develops a strong and capable space program and starts investing in it in the right ways then this will indeed be a boon for the British economy.

Also part of the future of this exciting new space industry must be the development of new space flight hardware. Such flight hardware needs to incorporate complex and sophisticated systems to launch satellites and collect samples from the moon, planets and outer space. Such missions could also pave the way for the discovery of new worlds outside our solar system and possibly Mars. A well designed, fully functional and reliable launch vehicle would allow us to take our first steps on the Moon, Mars or another planet within the next 50 years. It also means that any of the existing international space programs will still be operational in 2030. Only time will tell if the UK space industry will achieve all its ambitions.