The space industry is in rapid expansion. The space component is gaining importance in the defense sector, but dual-use technologies have become equally decisive with the massive development of instrumentation for observation of the Earth and its atmosphere within the context of environmental concerns. Meanwhile the rapid evolution of satellite communications toward the creation of satellite constellations has profound implications for the business and consumer services they can offer as well as for satellite navigation. All these sectors are seeing the adoption of a multitude of new combinations of technologies ranging from artificial intelligence to supercomputing to the development of new materials.
There is, at the same time, a push toward commercial space missions such as those associated with the possible exploitation of the Moon’s resources. This in general presupposes the launch of space logistics and maintenance operations within a framework of clear rules on orbit safety in conditions of increasing traffic. The governance called for must necessarily be international in nature, must keep pace with a nearly exponential increase in activity, and must simultaneously factor in the pivotal – and primarily national – role of defense installations in space.
Remaining in the defense sector, the Russia/Ukraine crisis once again highlights at least two factors that remain critical to maintaining security: space as an operational domain – starting with surveillance and data collection – and space as a cyber domain closely linked with all the technologies employed. Although NATO plays a key role in this context, a national dimension does exist for Italy, especially in terms of the resilient protection of critical infrastructures for which space capacities are essential.
The additional need to make all space activities environmentally sustainable calls for generating synergies between the space and green economies. This was precisely one of the dynamic elements recently identified by ESA along with rapid response capacity, particularly in the case of climate disasters and emergencies and the “protection of space assets”. For the medium term, ESA emphasizes the need for additional synergies to accelerate the dissemination of STEM disciplines as a cultural and technical prerequisite for the sector’s further development.
This sort of complex scenario requires massive investment. It demands forms of international cooperation such as shared projects and consortiums, primarily at the European level, given the heavy pressure of global competition. Italy is in a good position, with an advanced industrial level and a strong capacity for public/private cooperation, but the country must make a more concentrated effort at setting near future priorities. To that end, technology mapping would be a useful instrument when choosing what resources to mobilize. The timely preparation of skilled human capital is also key – naturally, and not least, from the employment standpoint.