The New Space Science: How the "New Space Economy" Is Rewriting the Rules of Astrophysics

The "new space economy" has often made headlines for its massive satellite constellations, raising concerns in the scientific community about the light pollution that threatens astronomical observations from Earth. However, this commercial space revolution, characterized by a drastic reduction in launch costs and rapid development times, might represent not a threat, but an extraordinary opportunity for astrophysics and basic science.

Under what conditions can this synergy be realized? The study "Space science & the new space economy," published in the journal Space Policy by Dr. Fabrizio Fiore, Director of the INAF-Astronomical Observatory of Trieste, and Dr. Martin Elvis, an astronomer at the Center for Astrophysics - Harvard & Smithsonian, attempts to answer this question. Through a detailed analysis of the costs and scientific productivity of recent space missions, the study outlines the contours of a "new space science" emerging from this new paradigm. We discussed it with the first author, Fabrizio Fiore.

The Success of LICIACube: Intelligence Over Complexity
An emblematic example of this change is the all-Italian LICIACube mission. The small satellite, about the size of a shoebox, photographed the effects of NASA's DART probe impact on the asteroid Dimorphos up close, achieving exceptional scientific productivity per kilogram of payload.

"Traditional space missions rely on ultra-sophisticated instrumentation and highly reliable satellites," explains Dr. Fabrizio Fiore. "LICIACube, in contrast, hosts fairly ordinary instrumentation. Its huge advantage was being in the right place at the right time to make truly unique observations."

This success demonstrates a fundamental principle: cutting-edge science can be done even with limited budgets and standard instruments. The secret, according to Fiore, lies in abandoning custom-developed components for single, expensive missions in favor of standardized, mass-produced "components off the shelf." "Standardization and mass production," he states, "are the foundation of new commercial infrastructures and can also be the foundation for new scientific space missions."

From Dedicated Missions to the Conquest of the Moon
The concept, which originated with CubeSats in the early 2000s, has now been extended to much larger satellites. "Today, SpaceX's Starlink 2 satellites weigh about 700 kg and cost a minimal fraction compared to similarly sized satellites from NASA and ESA," Fiore points out. Private companies now offer standard platforms capable of hosting hundreds of kilograms of instrumentation at costs more than ten times lower than traditional ones.

However, this standardization has its limits, favoring missions with targeted and dedicated scientific objectives over large, "multi-purpose" observatories. A winning model, according to Fiore, could be an adaptation of NASA's Explorer program, which has historically been based on small to medium-sized targeted missions. "Opening the Explorer model to the commercial market could be an important first step, especially if we could also import it to Europe," he suggests.

Another frontier of opportunity is the Moon. With the Artemis (USA) and ILRS (China) programs planning dozens of missions in the next ten years, a true "new lunar economy" is developing. NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Service (CLPS) program, which involves purchasing transportation services from private companies, is a perfect example of the new model. "A great deal of high-quality science can be done on and from the Moon," says Fiore. "It would be strange not to take advantage of this opportunity."

The Future of Great Observatories in the Commercial Era
Yet, the icon of modern astrophysics is the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), a telescope that represents the exact opposite of the new space economy: enormous, unique, extremely expensive, and the result of decades of development. Will there still be room for missions of this scale?

"I've been in the field for almost 40 years, but I was truly moved to be able to study galaxies and black holes just a few hundred million years after the origin of the Universe with JWST," Fiore admits. "Long live JWST! But the problem is: will a mission with a similar discovery potential be possible in the future?"

According to Fiore, JWST has likely already hit the so-called "funding wall." A $10 billion mission with a 20-year development timeline is hardly sustainable in the new context. A clear sign is NASA's recent decision to rethink the Mars Sample Return mission, seeking faster and cheaper commercial alternatives. This is compounded by political uncertainties, such as the drastic science budget cuts proposed by the new U.S. administration, which challenge the model that has long seen basic research as the engine of innovation.

A World at Different Speeds and the Need for Rules
While the new space economy has exploded in the United States, the rest of the world is moving at different speeds. "Europe is adopting these changes with at least a decade's delay," Fiore observes, "but things are starting to move here as well, with ESA beginning to fund small and medium-sized innovative enterprises." The situation is different in China, where a real boom is underway. "Should the Trump model prevail in the U.S., and given Europe's slowness, China will likely write many of the next pages in space exploration."

This space race, however, cannot proceed without rules. The proliferation of satellites and future lunar activities pose a sustainability problem. "The process must be governed, not just passively accepted," Fiore warns. "We must ask ourselves how to make space exploration sustainable to avoid the mistakes we've made here on Earth."

The current governing treaty, the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, is obsolete. The international community is divided between those calling for new regulations and those who advocate for a "Far West" approach to avoid stifling innovation. But the space environment, Fiore emphasizes, is fragile. "What would happen if an Artemis lander, upon landing, damaged a nearby Chinese lander with scattered debris in one of the few suitable sites at the lunar south pole? A lawless, cowboy attitude may not be sustainable."

In conclusion, for astrophysics, the new space economy is not just a choice but "an obligatory path and, above all, a great opportunity." An opportunity that can only be seized by intelligently using new tools, favoring targeted missions, and, most importantly, developing a system of global governance to ensure the sustainable development of human activities in space.

Bibliography

Fiore, F., & Elvis, M. (2025). Space science & the new space economy. Space Policy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spacepol.2025.101567