Imagine how expensive your flights would be if airplanes flew as rarely as space shuttles or Mars rovers. How would our society differ if only the opulent could afford this luxury? Many of us have probably heard of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos’s campaigns towards consumer space travel through images of Tesla cars in low orbit or news stories involving billionaires in space. Though some ridicule these lofty pursuits, consider how commercial airlines have shaped and arguably improved our lives through more than just consumer transport. Consider the socioeconomic, political, technological, or even cultural reverberations space travel and exploration can send through modern society.

Harry W. Jones from the NASA Ames Research Center argues that socioeconomic barriers, not reusability, inflate costs of today’s modern space industry [1]. The article mentions a lack of market competition between the US government, NASA, and the American military. Because only these wealthy corporations can fund space programs through taxes, there’s little pressure on manufacturers to lower costs. Jones estimates nearly a third of launch costs come from non-technological expenses such as multiple contractors, artificial government jobs, infrastructure, and outsourcing of materials. But as the industry migrates into the private sector, Jones finds companies’ business-like operational and managerial strategies to be successful in expanding commercial access to space travel.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX embodies the author’s vision of efficiency and pioneering perspective. From a financial perspective, SpaceX’s vertical integration beats NASA’s horizontal integration: a compact, vertically integrated company manufactures and develops their products within their scope while a horizontally integrated company spreads out or outsources their resources. SpaceX’s smaller, in-house, and driven workforce develops their rockets in relatively few locations with 21st century automated manufacturing. NASA, on the other hand, employs many independent contractors across the nation. Alongside streamlined management and willingness to implement new technologies, Musk’s model slashes SpaceX’s launch costs up to 68% relative to NASA [1].

Although market issues hinder affordable space travel more than Musk’s proposed reusability, it’s worth investigating how sustainable technology will eventually dominate the industry. At the moment, additional re-entry engineering challenges like landing fuel or atmospheric wear make reusable rockets more expensive and unable to deliver as much payload, or mass. Consider purchasing a throw-away plastic water bottle versus a reusable albeit expensive Hydroflask or Swell. Yet, overcoming imposing finances only highlights SpaceX’s drive for sustainable technology.

Two Czech scientists compare direct costs like fuel, operations, or different launch stages for two types of SpaceX’s reusable and single-use rockets (Figure 1) [2]. Their data reveal SpaceX saves the most from reusing first-stage launches, where the rocket propels out of the atmosphere. Other stages, design, operations, and fuel costs remain consistent between the various single-use and reusable rocket models. Granted, sustainable technology cuts expenses by a few tens of millions while business practices save nearly 940 million [1]. But we all start from somewhere, and no reusable model begins perfectly. It’s easy to envision how the paltry contributions of sustainable technology will flourish over time as scientists and business leaders work together.

The engineering and economic approaches to accessible commercialization may appear mutually exclusive. However, economic professors Brennan and Vecchi combine both perspectives in a paper analyzing the scientific prowess and business practices of private space corporations [3]. They note the successes of private industry, mainly managerial efficiency and technological sustainability, stem from a standard business model termed circular economics. Circular economics relies upon both cutting-edge innovation as well as sustainability across four basic pillars. It enables companies like Blue Horizon or SpaceX to thrive in volatile markets such as the space industry (Figure 2). Let’s dive deeper into the steps of this theory.

Reusability and experiential wisdom govern all of circular economic theory’s principles. Foremost, it’s no surprise that any company would reuse materials for as long as possible, if economically savvy. The authors consider it vital for companies to adapt existing resources in fast-paced environments. How frustrated would you get if you had to change your house or car keys on a random whim? Although many polled companies claim to recycle material products and resources, the authors conclude only three-fourths actually do so. The remaining companies then embark through four basic steps rooted in the pursuit of experiential wisdom (Figure 2). First, they celebrate innovation and diversity both within their industrial research and creative staff. Taking risks not only rewards companies with novel technology but, most importantly, lets them apply experiential wisdom for future business plans, endeavors, or research proposals. Yet, most companies fear failure. It’s scary, embarrassing, and, even worse, potentially expensive. Recall one of your recent silly mistakes. Did that memory put a grimace on your face? Yet, the experiential wisdom gained from this adventurous, risk-taking perspective not only shapes business strategies but also drives further innovation within the company. In the end, these corporations easily adapt business models, reduce costs, and survive in the dynamic, research-based space industry. Like the Carnegie or Rockefeller captains of the Industrial Revolution,

Musk and Bezos derive their entrepreneurial perspective from their economic stability and pioneer technology and business models to send themselves and others into space.

For now, it’s easy to scoff at billionaires launching their products or selves into space. It’s just as natural to question those who invest fortunes in an industry so seemingly removed from our apparent daily struggles. But those of us lucky to live in first-world countries often take for granted simple luxuries like airline travel and all its associated boons. These innovations no matter how small lay the foundation for our flawed albeit stable and functioning society. Maybe millennia from now, we’ll wonder how we lived without affordable space travel. Critical press, lofty expenses, or operational logistics cannot extinguish our innate entrepreneurial spirit.

References:

1. Jones, H. W. (2018). The Recent Large Reduction in Space Launch Cost. International Conference on Environmental Systems. https://doi.org/ICES-2018-81
2. Tománek, R., & Hospodka, J. (2018). Reusable Launch Space Systems. Magazine of Aviation Development, 6(2). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.14311/MAD.2018.02.02
3. Brennan, L., & Vecchi, A. (2020). The Orbital Circular Economy Framework: Emblematic Evidence from the Space Industry. Kindai Management Review, 8, 81–93.