New Space: Off to space

That sounds like a classic start-up mindset, but it is by no means limited to start-ups alone. Around 100 start-ups are active within the German New Space ecosystem. The German Aerospace Center also includes specialized small and medium-sized enterprises in its assessment, bringing the total to approximately 300 companies. Alongside them, established system integrators such as Airbus and OHB are adapting to this new pace. Government-funded space activities also remain an important part of the sector: agencies no longer have to develop everything themselves at great expense but can instead purchase services and rideshare opportunities.

In 2025, the German Space Agency secured payload space aboard the Nyx space capsule of the German-French start-up The Exploration Company in order to conduct experiments in microgravity. A prototype was launched in the same year on a Falcon 9 rocket. The mission ended with the loss of the capsule, but the company nevertheless regarded the flight as a partial success. Pia Thauer shares this positive assessment and points to “long-term leverage effects”: “Such government contracts send a credible signal to private investors.”

“The government will always remain an important customer for us – whether directly or indirectly,” confirms Dr. Christian Schmierer. At the same time, the CEO of the Heilbronn-based rocket company HyImpulse emphasizes: “Compared with the United States, the European space market is still at a very early stage.” Indeed, the financial gap between Europe and the United States remains substantial. It was less painful as long as the transatlantic relationship was considered reliable. However, since Donald Trump publicly questioned the partnership, the gap has appeared more threatening. Germany and Europe are responding with higher contributions to the European Space Agency as well as increased national space funding.

Governments and investors are mobilizing billions. As a result, New Space is increasingly attracting the attention of traditional industries, The team of the Heilbronn-based rocket company HyImpulse ahead of the launch of the single-stage SR75 launch vehicle, designed to carry payloads of up to 250 kilograms. As Pia Thauer observes in her role as Project Lead of the Space Innovation Hub, which brings together public-sector customers and New Space providers. “We are seeing automotive suppliers, for example, adapting their expertise and components for use in the space sector.” According to Thauer, this development could benefit a sector that is strongly focused on scaling.

Christian Schmierer sees the potential for a boost to Germany’s New Space sector, but at the same time warns that a “substantial build-up” is required – one that includes greater production capacity, qualified personnel, and genuine spaceflight expertise. The sums being discussed sound enormous, but they are spread over several years. Moreover, this is not only about a market that analysts expect to grow to US$1.8 trillion worldwide by 2035, but also about Europe’s sovereignty in space – with Germany potentially serving as a driving force. “Germany has the largest number of companies in Europe, the largest workforce, and therefore the biggest talent pool, as well as strong universities and research institutions such as the DLR, from whose environment we ourselves emerged,” says HyImpulse co-founder Schmierer. “There is no shortage of fundamentals.”

Nor is there any shortage of New Space players. One of the sector’s strengths lies in translating satellite data into IT applications: wildfire detection, agriculture, climate and thermal data analysis, and infrastructure monitoring. Companies such as OroraTech, constellr, LiveEO, and Marble Imaging – supported by satellite manufacturers and system integrators such as Reflex Aerospace and Berlin Space Technologies – demonstrate that German Earth observation is internationally competitive. Many of these applications are dual-use, meaning they are relevant for both civilian and military purposes.

In particular, the development of small satellites and standardized mini-satellites (CubeSats) is regarded as a key driver of Germany’s space sector. Because they are standardized and industrially manufactured, these satellites are intended to be affordable even for small companies and universities. There is, however, one challenge: this technology must also reach space. Europe’s role in space will, to a considerable extent, be determined by this bottleneck. In 2025, there were 330 orbital rocket launches worldwide, of which only eight used European launch vehicles. Before that, the continent temporarily found itself without an operational rocket of its own. With Ariane 6 and Vega-C, Europe’s independent access to space has been restored. Nevertheless, launches remain expensive and payload opportunities remain limited.

Microlaunchers are expected to provide greater flexibility: “smaller” rockets – still up to 30 meters tall – that could one day be booked as easily as taxis. In Germany, Isar Aerospace, Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA), and HyImpulse are working to address this bottleneck. Isar and RFA are developing small launch vehicles for orbital missions, while HyImpulse relies on a proprietary hybrid propulsion system using paraffin – a solid fuel that sounds more like candle wax than high technology.

As of the editorial deadline, no privately developed European microlauncher has yet reached a stable orbit. Isar and RFA aim to come closer to that goal in 2026, while HyImpulse is continuing suborbital testing for the time being and is developing its own orbital launch vehicle, SL1, for 2027. The race remains open, but demand apparently does not. “We can hardly keep up with the number of inquiries we receive,” says Christian Schmierer. “Many satellite operators want to demonstrate that their hardware – and therefore their business model – works.” Hopes for a breakthrough are high. So is the pressure: Europe’s ability to remain competitive is at stake.