Space Industry in Argentina, Brazil, and India: How Are Emerging Countries Joining New Space?

Resumo

The recent transformations of the global space sector, characterized by the decreased cost of production and launches of space vehicles and cargo and greater access to satellite data and its applications, have been called new space. In this work, it is questioned how these changes carry implications for the market insertion of emerging countries. The term new space is associated with the rise of private space companies and the greater participation of nontraditional actors, such as startups and developing countries. The space technology growth among these actors could reduce the costs and risks of investments for the States, which are traditionally very high and inaccessible due to limited public budgets. In this sense, this article is intended to identify the space production structures of Argentina, Brazil, and India, the public and private institutions involved with space production, the main companies of these countries, their products, and their recent performance in the foreign market. Research data were collected through specific reports on the space sector, in databases, and on the official websites of Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), the National Commission of Space Activities (CONAE), and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The results show three different stages related to spatial production in these three countries and indicate that there is no dichotomy between public and private investments since the insertion of new space is made possible by the State.