Many commercial satellite constellation operators continue to fall short of their objectives: about 45 percent of announced constellations have not yet had a satellite launch. Yet, there are signs of progress. In a study conducted in early 2023, senior partner Ryan Brukardt and colleagues report that the number of launches has increased to more than 300 from about 250 in mid-2019, and that about 30 percent of constellations were able to launch satellites over the past year, compared with only about 15 percent in mid-2021.
Image description:
A set of three segmented bar graphs, each totaling 100%, shows the various stages of satellite constellation deployments for 2019, 2021, and early 2023. In 2023, 45% of companies yet to launch any satellites, and only 3.1% have reached their announced ambition targets. This is part of an overall constant picture across all three years studied. A secondary data visual below the bar graphs shows the total number of constellations launched for each year, with 102 in mid-2019, 244 in mid-2021, and 321 in early 2023.
Footnote 1: Figures may not sum to 100%, because of rounding. Footnote 2: Growth for each constellation was measured at approximately 6-month intervals. Constellations that showed no growth for 2 consecutive intervals were classified as having flat growth within the past year. Constellations with no growth for 3 or more intervals were classified as stagnated.
Source: NewSpace Index; McKinsey analysis
End of image description.
To read the article, see “Expectations versus reality: Commercial-satellite constellations,” April 14, 2023.
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