Space Situational Awareness Services Market

Market Overview

The global space situational awareness services market size was worth USD 128.41 million in 2022 and is estimated to reach an expected value of USD 170.95 million by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 3.1% during the forecast period (2023 – 2031).

Space situational awareness (SSA) services are the founding element of space security. They entail keeping track of all artificial and natural objects, particle fluxes, and energy and understanding how the space picture keeps changing over time. Space situational awareness (SSA) services refer to tracking, monitoring, and locating objects in space and predicting where the object will be located at any given time. SSA is a system that generally deals with space surveillance and tracking, space weather, and near-Earth things. It tracks all the artificial and natural objects, energy, and particle fluxes using the network of radar and electro-optical sensors.

According to the prognosis for satellite launches worldwide, 45,131 spacecraft will be launched between 2022 and 2032. 95 percent of these 45,131 satellites are anticipated to operate in low Earth orbit (LEO). This shows that more than 95% of the satellites are expected to work in one orbital segment, resulting in an increasing condition of congestion that raises worries about the potential of collision and space debris. The number of satellite launches in the following years will rise as more commercial satellite operators enter the space situational awareness services market. This indicates that the space industry will face ever-increasing congestion and risk from space debris. Given this circumstance, the need for space situational awareness services is very high, and the same is also expected to persist.

Market Dynamics

Global Space Situational Awareness Services Market Drivers

Growing Number of Space Debris Clouds

The amount of space debris clouds are expected to increase exponentially moving forward. Due to the anti-satellite test conducted by various countries and satellite crash events, many energized fragment clouds have already been created that could threaten satellites and international space stations. This resulted in complex mission operations for satellite operators. They operate the satellites where the floating debris clouds put the mission in a very hazardous environment. The debris clouds could bring significant loss to the operators in terms of technical and financial.

Increase in the Number of Satellites in LEO Results in Growing Space Congestion

The global satellite launch forecast estimates 45,131 satellites to be launched within the 2022-2032 timeline. Out of these 45,131 satellites, 95% of satellites are expected to operate in the LEO, indicating that over 95% are expected to operate in one orbital segment leading to a growing state of congestion. This increases operating satellite constellations in very close proximity and increases the risk of collisions. The operator will require enhanced SSA services to operate the satellite safely in the congested Orbit and prevent it from collapsing.

Global Space Situational Awareness Services Market Restraint

Presence of Open-Source Data Sets and In-House Capabilities

The increasing demand for space situational awareness services has set the platform for educational institutions and non-profit organizations to develop web-based space visualization tools. The tools help non-commercial users to gain knowledge about space situational awareness services. In addition, commercial users have certain limitations in using the platform's application programming interface (API) and gaining the benefit of SSA services.

Several constellations and established ground station operators have in-house SSA services capabilities. However, SSA service is necessary for in-orbit service providers to conduct operations safely. Thus, the in-orbit service providers eventually build their in-house SSA capabilities, becoming a competitor for commercial SSA service providers.

Global Space Situational Awareness Services Market Opportunities

Evolving Constellation Operational Requirements and Increasing Automation of Mission Operations

Due to the increase in satellite constellations, the mission operation for constellation operators has become complex. To operate satellite constellations, the satellite operators and ground station operators would require high-efficiency and high-processing computation systems that process millions of information in microseconds and provide information about the location and various characteristics of the satellite. This results in satellite operators acquiring support from enhanced dedicated SSA service providers.

Increased satellite constellations made the mission operations complex in a very congested space environment. To minimize the human efforts in these complex mission operations, satellite operators use artificial intelligence (machine learning) to process the vast amount of data that flows during satellite operations. In addition to that, the operators will use artificial intelligence with onboard computers to detect the risk and execute maneuvers automatically.

Regional Analysis

Based on region, the global space situational awareness services market analysis is carried out across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Rest-of-the-World.

North America Dominates the Global Market

North America is the most significant shareholder and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 0.6% during the forecast period. The North American region comprises the regional markets of the U.S. and Canada. The North American region dominates the global market, with huge investments and revenue expected to be generated from the U.S. and Canadian markets. Currently, the U.S. is the dominant country estimated to provide 80% of the global space situational awareness services, so the demand for space situational awareness services in North America is anticipated to remain high till 2032. Additionally, the U.S. invests heavily in space situational awareness services' research, development, and regulatory framework for various applications. It is expected to gain prominence in the market during the forecast period.

Europe is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 1.6% during the forecast period. The space situational awareness services market in Europe is still developing. Currently, there are only four companies that provide space situational awareness services. This indicates that the competition in this region is meager, allowing vast numbers of new startups to enter the market to offer space situational awareness services. As the number of European satellite launches is expected to increase, the satellite operators and other stakeholders will likely opt for the SSA services due to increased congestion in the low Earth orbits.

Asia-Pacific is the third largest region. The global market in Asia-Pacific (APAC) is still developing. Currently, there are only three companies that provide space situational awareness services. APAC region has many developing countries compared to the other areas. This indicates that the competition in this region is meager, allowing many new startups to enter the market to offer space situational awareness services. Moreover, countries such as India, Japan, and China launch several satellites yearly. In addition, several countries in this region plan to establish small and medium launch vehicles, deep space missions, and national space stations. This suggests that the global space situational awareness services market is expected to grow gradually.

Segmental Analysis

The global space situational awareness services market share is segmented by orbit, end user, service, and region. 

By orbit, the global market is divided into Low Earth Orbit (LEO), Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), and Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO). 

The Low Earth Orbit (LEO) segment dominates the global market. The global satellite operated in LEO is 19,563. One thousand five hundred forty-four satellites used at an altitude of 500km and below are subjected to atmospheric drag, adding more perturbations and contributing more to orbital decay. This indicates that satellites operate at a length of 500 km and down, requiring significantly higher and constant inputs from space situational awareness service providers for efficient station-keeping operation.

Similarly, 18,019 satellites operated at an altitude between 501 km and 1,500 km. Although the number does not include expansion and replacement phases, over 90% of the satellites at this altitude are commercial and will be replaced in the future. This indicates that this altitude is expected to be active, and the congestion in this altitude will continue to grow more moving forward. This will result in rising threat perceptions due to the increasing congestion scenarios due to many satellites operating close to each other. As a result of the satellite operating nearby, it will lead to satellite collision and signal interference moving forward. This will result in a growing trend of satellite operators subscribing to commercial SSA services at these altitudes.

By end-user, the global market is divided into satellite operators, ground station service providers, launch service providers, national space agencies, in-orbit service providers, satellite manufacturers, and satellite subsystem and components manufacturers. 

The satellite operators segment owns the highest market share. The satellite operators currently operating with ten satellite constellations will be operating with 100 satellite constellations, and well-established companies will operate with thousands of satellite constellations moving forward. This indicates that satellite operators will require high-efficiency dedicated commercial space situational services to manage their satellite operations efficiently. Since the satellites are expected to be operated nearby, the threat of satellites colliding with other satellites or space debris is high. Hence satellite operators require SSA services to monitor their satellites every second. In addition, the increasing space congestion leads to a rising threat of signal interference. The concern about increasing signal interference is growing drastically among satellite operators.

By service, the global space situational awareness services are categorized into mission operation support, collision avoidance and tracking, interference avoidance, rendezvous support, and space weather.

The collision avoidance and tracking segment dominates the global market and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 3.1% during the forecast period. Due to the increased number of satellite constellations, the LEO orbit is getting congested. As a result of growing congestion in LEO, there won't be any place to position any new satellites, and the satellite operators will have to replace their old satellites. The increase in the threat perception of satellites is due to several reasons, such as the threat of space debris, growing congestion, satellite collision, and anti-satellite (ASAT) tests. Since thousands of satellites will operate nearby, the chances of them entering collision courses will remain high. The growing space debris will only add to this evolving threat perception.

For instance, in February 2009, the Russian Cosmos 2251 satellite collided with the U.S. Iridium spacecraft, which appeared to be the worst space event in history. This collision created more than 500 pieces of debris in space, posing an additional risk for the satellites. In addition, the anti-satellite test conducted by various countries such as Russia, India, the U.S., and China has turned space into a junkyard. Due to these events, satellite operators must invest in collision avoidance and tracking facilities. Eventually, satellite operators show more interest in developing enhanced collision avoidance and tracking facilities to protect their satellites. These challenges and associated concerns will remain key drivers of this segment of the SSA services market over the forecast timeline.

Recent Developments

• February 2023 - Astroscale Holdings Inc. ("Astroscale"), the market leader in satellite servicing and long-term sustainability across all orbits, received an investment of USD 23 million from Yusaku Maezawa, the first private Japanese citizen to visit the International Space Station (ISS).

• February 2023 - The market leader in satellite servicing and long-term sustainability across all orbits, Astroscale Holdings Inc., and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, a prominent defense and space company, announced that Mitsubishi Electric had contributed USD 25 million to Astroscale's Series G funding round. In addition to the investment, the companies have decided to work together to develop and produce sustainable satellite buses for Japanese national security constellations.