Why Europe Is Building Its Own Space Program
The recent failed Spectrum rocket launch is another example of the poor state of Europe’s space program—but is, at least, a step in the right direction.
History, one might say, is returning in full force to post-Cold War Europe. After 30 years of benefiting from generous American security guarantees and innovation, the return of Donald Trump to the White House has given the European Union the decisive “wakeup call” it has avoided hearing for so long. Three months into Trump’s tenure, it is clear that Uncle Sam has had enough—and Europe must learn to look after its own affairs.
Between the rise of a more insular and nationalist American political leadership, as well as the growing fear that Russian troops and tanks could attack from the east at any moment, European leaders are desperate to make their continent more united and self-reliant. One such area the Europeans are striving to display this unity and self-reliance is in the all-important strategic and economic domain of space.
Europe Realizes the Importance of Space
First, it is important to understand why space is such a key strategic and economic domain. The modern world depends upon satellites orbiting the Earth. They provide mass communication, surveillance, and a host of other capabilities that only systems in space could provide.
Today, the United States, Russia, and China are the most powerful actors in space. In addition, there are a bevy of private space companies that are rapidly growing to define the civilian side of the next space age. But European firms have lagged far behind American ones—so far, at least.
In terms of the economics of space, the World Economic Forum predicts that by the year 2035, the space sector will have grown to reach $1.8 trillion—up from $630 billion in 2023, averaging a growth rate of nine percent per year.
Then there’s the fact that most modern militaries depend upon space for their most vital functions. Should space be denied to one side’s military in a war by another power, defeat would almost certainly be assured for the side that lost access to it first.
Consequently, the Europeans are trying to rehabilitate and enhance their domestic manufacturing industries, restore lost military capacity, and compete for a prominent place in the strategic domain of space. But this is a tall order—and the nations of Europe will face many setbacks along the way.
The Failure of Isar’s Spectrum Rocket
This fact was demonstrated recently by the failure of Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum two-stage launch vehicle to make it to orbit. Isar is one of many European firms competing to develop small launch vehicles for the European Space Agency (ESA) to use. The Spectrum rocket took off from the otherworldly Andøya Spaceport in Norway on March 30.
About 30 seconds into the launch, though, the launch vehicle’s flight termination system was activated, shutting off the rocket’s engines and sending it crashing back to the Earth. Company leaders told the media they were still uncertain as to why this occurred.
The two-stage Spectrum rocket is designed to place up to 2,204 pounds into low-Earth orbit (LEO) and 1,543 pounds into sun-synchronous orbit. The first stage of this rocket uses nine of Isar’s Aquila engines, powered by liquid oxygen and liquid propane, while the second stage uses a single vacuum-optimized Aquila engine.
Isar raised $430 million for its space mission.
Although the rocket did not reach orbit as intended, Isar has claimed that the launch was nonetheless a success. In spite of the rocket’s failure, the company can now study its flight telemetry and learn from whatever failures occurred.
The company’s executives are correct—at least in theory. Far more successful aerospace companies, notably SpaceX, also suffered hundreds of catastrophic failures from which they learned vital lessons.
And the fact that regulation-heavy Europe is both accepting of this failure and willing to let their indigenous space companies keep trying to perfect launches for Europe shows how much things have changed. Only a few years ago, Europe’s officials likely would have stymied even the attempt to launch from within Europe. But the global race for supremacy—of which accessing the cosmos is a key component—is on, and Europe finds itself in the weakest position imaginable.
So, while the Isar executives are correct that the best way to a successful rocket launch is by learning from failures, the fact remains that Europe is running out of time. The ESA has lagged far behind the Americans, the Russians, and the Chinese. Even the Indians and Japanese are outpacing Europe in terms of satellite launch capability.
The failure of Isar’s Spectrum rocket to launch indicates that Europe is taking seriously the call to return to history and abandon the political and cultural assumptions of their society that were forged in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The Stakes for Europe in Space Could Not Be Higher
It also means, however, that Europe is much farther behind the rest of the world. And they may be unable to ever catch up.
Especially when the Americans are lining the orbits with Starlink satellite constellations, the Russians developing powerful anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons, and the Chinese are practicing “dogfighting” in space with their own satellites. Oh, and don’t forget the Indians deploying record numbers of their own satellites on the cheap.
Europe has been asleep for far too long. The recent failed Spectrum rocket launch is yet another example of this reality—but is, at least, a step in the right direction.
About the Author: Brandon J. Weichert
Brandon J. Weichert, a Senior National Security Editor at The National Interest as well as a contributor at Popular Mechanics, who consults regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including the Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, the Asia Times, and countless others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.
Image: Shutterstock / y0ye.