The cost of low-Earth orbit satellites has declined at about 5-10% pa, since the year 2000. A satellite costs $100,000-200,000/kg. Launch costs are now $1,000-10,000/kg, although the scatter is broad, and potentially higher for small payloads on low-utilization rockets. Within that, fuel costs are around $10/kg. This data-file captures the costs of space launch.
The first satellite was launched into orbit in 1957. The first broadcasting satellite, Telstar 1, was launched by AT&T, in 1962, in collaboration with NASA. The modern space industry has grown from there. There were 258 space launches in 2024, deploying 2,854 satellites. Around 12,000 satellites are currently orbiting Earth. About 60% are now Starlink satellites.
The average orbit is 500-600km, which is part of Low Earth Orbit, technically spanning from 160-2,000km. Starlink satellites orbit lower, at 350-550km. On the other end of the spectrum, geostationary and geosynchronous satellites must orbit at 36,000 km.
The average satellite mass is 200-300kg. Historically, a GPS satellite weighs 2-tons, costs $250M (launch costs excluded), and is designed to remain in orbit for 15-30 years. Starlink’s V2 mini satellites weigh about 800kg each but orbit may only last 5-7 years.
Launching a Falcon 9 with 10-20 tons of payload requires 500T of propellant, of which 100T is Rocket Kerosene (RP-1) (800 bbls, 1.3 GWH) and 400 tons is liquid oxygen (requiring 300 kWh/ton of air separation electricity, or 0.12 GWH of energy per launch). Hence we estimate the total energy use is 75-150 MWH per ton of cargo. But the total cost of the fuel and oxygen is likely only around $10/kg, or in other words, 0.2-0.5% of the total launch costs.
Rockets and satellites are the expensive part, not fuel. In addition to the launch rocket, satellites cost $100,000-200,000/kg. The global space economy has been valued at $600bn pa, of which $300bn pa is for launching stuff into space, and the other half is mostly GPS-enabled or data-hungry electronic devices on the ground. Satellite services are 70% of space industry value.
SpaceX’s 2025 revenues have been estimated at $16bn. Heavyweight reusable rockets have been key to SpaceX’s success. Raytheon, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Airbus and Northrop Grumman all have space-related revenues above $10bn pa, potentially as high as $35bn pa for RTX, at 20-50% of total revenues.
This data-file also features our estimates into the costs and sizings of space-based AI data-centers, and the probabilities of collisions with space-debris, which are built up from first principles.
Elsewhere in our research, we have explored beaming power through space as microwave energy, there are always sci-fi fantasies about solar in space if launch costs become cheap enough, but in the near-term we think the rise of AI and robotics will increase demand for geolocated devices on the ground.