Aleph Farms, in partnership with the Israel Institute of Technology, have successfully grown meat from cow cells on the ISS. BeeHex, who received a NASA grant, has developed a 3D printer capable of making and baking pizzas and cakes . An established sector of the space industry is satellite technology services, utilized in both communications and data services. Industry giants such as Amazon’s Project Kuiper and OneWeb have begun constructing satellite constellations to capture the global coverage market in hopes of bringing internet and cellular access to the remote areas of the world. SpaceX has already partnered with TMobile to provide cellular service to every part of the United States. The satellite sector is expected to expand its services, from quantum satellites and maturing remote sensing, as well as satellite servicing services to maintain satellite operations.Quantum satellites are satellites with quantum technology capabilities such as quantum communication, quantum state transfer, remote quantum computation, modular operation by linking quantum computers in separate locations, and multi-party quantum information protocols . Quantum communication provides the most secure form of information transfer due to the observer effect, Advanced Encryption Standard algorithms,and Quantum Key Distribution , which prevents and detects any intruders. Due to its reliance on single photons sources and exposure to transmission losses, there is a synergy between satellites and the viability of mass scale quantum technology usage. Quantum satellites are capable of transmitting information over long distances that are faster than conventional satellites by many orders of magnitude; currently,vertical farming supplies radio waves to the Moon takes 2-3 seconds, and to Mars would take 5-20 minutes.

Quantum satellites are expected to shorten the time to 30 picoseconds, not to mention it will be much more secure than current satellites . Furthermore, satellite-based quantum communication networks avoid the needs of underwater fiber or cable, which both come with known infrastructure vulnerabilities. Because quantum communication via free space has potential to enhance national security, several governments have spearheaded collaborative initiatives with each other as well as private companies. China’s Academy of Sciences has already successfully launched and is currently operating its Micius satellite to develop quantum encryption and teleportation technology; a constellation network that is projected to be complete by 2030. The European Space Agency recently announced a plan to establish a consortium of 20 companies to place a satellite capable of quantum key distribution technology in orbit by 2024. Singapore’s Office for Space Technology and Industry has partnered with SpeQtral as well as Thales to launch its QKD satellite in 2024. Virgin Orbit and Arqit Quantum have planned for QKD satellite launches for members of the Five Eyes Alliance . Japan’s Tokyo QKD Network consists of five domestic companies along with three European partners . Remote sensing technologies via satellites provide one of the most cost-effective methods to observe coverage of vast areas and even the whole Earth continuously, allowing for accurate analysis of geophysical and biophysical parameters . Use cases range from military and intelligence-gathering to land cover mapping, strengthening national defense and providing delineating and mapping information for resource planning and unlocking dead capital . Capella Space provides proprietary synthetic aperture radar imaging capable of accurate rendered images through any weather conditions ; they have secured contracts with the U.S. Air Force and the National Reconnaissance Office. Orbital Insight provides geospatial analysis for businesses to track human activity; such data has been used to track carbon footprints, logistics, poverty, and other economic conditions .Arguably, its greatest economic impact lies in natural resource and commodities management throughout the supply chain: precision farming becomes more profitable with field-level insights, accurate weather forecasts, vegetation detection and index estimation, soil health level; logistics data for commodity procurement and distribution, allowing for accurate shipping as well as carbon emissions tracking and forecasting short-term commodities prices based on geospatial data, from farm level to consumer level markets. Planet Labs manages a constellation network of over 200 CubeSats capable of capturing 3-5 meters high resolution images using multi-spectral, panchromatic, and video sensors, allowing for military, underground, and oceanic measurements and data.

Such data have assisted Norway’s Climate and Forest Initiatives as well as the Food and Agricultural Organization to combat deforestation through tracking base maps of countries with high forest densities. A partnership with the California Forest Observatory allows Planet Labs to dynamically map forest composition down to the tree level to provide a more accurate tools for assessing wildfire risk. Argentinian company Satellogic also provide key agricultural metrics for crop management, and predictions of biophysical variables while Descartes Labs, founded by Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists, have established a pipeline of data flows to provide instant access to images of the Earth; DARPA will be using Descartes’ platform to build global-scale applications and offer them in the marketplace as a commercial service for data scientists . Remote sensing is not limited to terrestrial applications; discovering locations of ice/water deposits and other natural resources on the Moon and Mars as well as precious metals on celestial objects for optimal spacecraft landings and travel can streamline logistic operations. Furthermore, remote sensing can aid in structuring property rights as well as determining property valuations of extraterrestrial land. With the expected growth in space exploration, there is likely to be unintended consequences such as the rapid proliferation of satellite and satellite debris. The increasing demand for space goods and services indicates a proliferation of satellite constellations and other LEO objects; an estimated 100,000 satellites majorly proposed by broadband satellite companies,observational satellite companies,CubeSats/small satellite companies,and others, are projected to be in orbit by 2030 . While there are an estimated 4,500 active satellites, NASA estimates 9,000 metric tons of space debris composed of inactive satellites, partial rocket and satellite components, and micrometeroids are unaccounted for, with 70% of debris in LEO . This jeopardizes key space assets such as the ISS and the Hubble Space Telescope to collisions, exposing multilateral space agencies to billions of dollars of potential damages. Without satellite servicing, regulatory guidance to ensure stable increases in satellites, technological advancements to control systems, and methods to exterminate space debris, a possible Kessler syndrome can occur. On the other hand, innovations to mitigate space debris are highly sought after due to the sheer number of projected and current satellites in need of liquidation, repair, or maintenance.

This necessitates preventive and non-preemptive mechanisms to reduce the amount of space debris. Preventive measures include satellite mapping to track objects in LEO; LeoLabs currently provides a subscription service to satellite operators and regulators with real-time data for any celestial object in close proximity to their assets. Such measures also include satellite servicing, in which satellites are maintained and repaired in-orbit by autonomous and robotic satellites. While DARPA’s Orbital Express project and DARPA Phoenix partnership were focused in disposing of geosynchronous orbit debris, industry firms such as SpaceLogistics, a subsidiary of Northrup Grumman, has seen success in providing the first life-extension services to Intelsat 901, a communication satellite, using Mission Extension Vehicle,vertical lettuce tower a satellite service vehicle capable of controlling orbit of a satellite. The second generation of the MEV has also successfully docked to Intelsat 10-02, another communication satellite. DARPA has partnered with SpaceLogistics for its Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites program in 2020, in which in-orbit satellite repair and augmentation is projected to occur. Companies such as Momentus are aiming to capture the CubeSat servicing market, while companies like Orbit Fab are attempting on-orbit satellite refueling. In terms of non-preemptive measures, anti-satellite weapons31 have been successfully demonstrated by China, India, Russia, United Kingdom and the United States. However, ASATs generate more space debris in smaller parts capable to damaging other satellites. Companies capable to end-of-life disposal services include Airbus, in which its multitool RemoveDebris satellite includes a space harpoon used to capture micrometeroids debris, a net to capture debris up to 2-meter diameter and 2 tons of mass and a drag sail that accelerates deorbiting of a defunct satellite. Japanese start-up Astroscale has developed two satellites capable to searching, inspecting, and docking onto defunct satellites after a proximity rendezvous to ultimately move it farther away from other LEO satellites. Given all the innovative opportunities presented in section 3, this section turns to organizational structures among aligned participants that will enhance the probabilities of successful discoveries. Given all the likely participants, an appropriate structure comes in the form of public-private research and development partnership . Such partnerships can take many forms including formal contractual commitment, resource allocations among the participants and well-established rights for each of the various parties to the partnership . For space exploration innovations and discoveries, there are three major participants: NASA, who provides legacy knowledge and expertise of the space industry; research universities that provide a present and future workforce capable of pushing out the frontiers of both basic and applied fundamental research; and private companies, who provide proprietary research technologies, collaborative researchers, and financing. Any PPRDPs must be designed around the alignment of incentives among the various participants. The alignment of incentives among the three major potential participants in the PPRDP is well established by a long history of governmental legislation. The passage of the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act, which granted intellectual property rights from federally funded research to universities, have incentivized research scientists to direct their research agenda towards potential commercial applications. Since this act, over 11,000 startups have been spun off from universities, technology firms and parks near universities have increased, and technology transfer offices have been formed to handle IPRs . In parallel, the 1986 Federal Technology Transfer Act established Cooperative Research and Development Agreements , allowing government agencies/national laboratories to facilitate R&D partnerships with non-federal entities . Under CRADAs, research results are protected under the Freedom of Information Act and while non-federal entities provide 100% of funding, they also retain joint patent rights. Ultimately, whether any PPRDPs increases the rate of discoveries and commercial innovations depend on whether agglomeration economies can foster externalities such as knowledge spillovers.

Two schools of thoughts have emerged to explain the externalities from agglomeration: Marshallian externalities occur in which industrial localization of a specific sector can lead to external economies of scales via knowledge spillovers, labor pooling, and input sharing . On the other hand, Jacobs externalities stem from a clustering of diverse firms which can lead to creative insights and knowledge spillovers that have interdisciplinary and cross-industry benefits to ultimate productivity.With PPRDPs, university partners are looking to augment their portfolio of intellectual capital, mainly through publishing research discoveries to the public but also through patent monetization . The private sector, on the other hand, relies on comparative advantages and profitable investments to remain competitive in their respective industries and will protect any proprietary discoveries. The initial allocation of control rights is crucial to avoid a “tragedy of the commons” problem, in which individuals deplete a common resource despite it being not efficient for the collective whole. It is important to recognize that space is a common pool resource. Hardin , which extends Lloyd , argues the only way to avoid this phenomenon is to establish a centralized authority that oversees public, open-access resources . Ostrom debunks this theory presenting numerous cases in which economic agents in common pool resource institutions effectively self-govern and sustainably manage such resources without privatization and centralization . CPR institutions diminish the need for taxes, a major transaction cost; any potential impacts of constitutional organization can be quantified in terms of expected transaction costs that arise in pursuing the collective interest . To maintain public sector interests and university integrity in terms of setting the research agenda while allowing for implementing contractual commitments between universities, NASA, and private companies, a decentralized autonomous organization framework has the potential to align incentives and produce cooperative behaviors rather than rent-seeking ones, subsequently producing greater net economic output. DAOs leverage “smart contracts,” or contracts that are programmed to be self-executing when predetermined conditions are met. Once smart contracts are established, there is no need for any third-party regulatory agent for the DAO to operate , allowing DAOs to be democratically run by members with common rules and purpose. In other words, DAOs have the potential to debunk Hardin’s tragedy of the commons.