Space Manufacturing May Soon Remake the Planet Below

(Bloomberg) -- Living and working in space is an expensive proposition—there has to be a payoff for all that time, effort and investment. Thanks to microgravity, there is—and it has the potential to be huge.

In episode two of Giant Leap, a Bloomberg Originals series, we take a look at the companies aiming to develop their products in low-Earth orbit. These days, startups are ready to create materials never before seen, including tools that can be 3D printed in microgravity for use in the International Space Station and on missions to the moon and beyond.

“Elon Musk and Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos and many other industrialists and forward-lookers—they’re making big investments to go up there. But there has to be a why; there has to be a reason to go,” says Dr. Richard Leach, NASA’s Chief Strategy Officer.

There is a definite business case for space, ironically, because discoveries and breakthroughs in orbit can help transform life on the ground—from near-pristine communications cable to human organs.  

“The most significant factor for the financial success of a space-based or space-related business is economies of scale,” says Carissa Bryce Christensen, founder and chief executive officer of Bryce Space and Technology. “The more activity there is, the more feasible it is.”

See Giant Leap, Episode One: The Race Is On to Corner the Satellite Launch Market

To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Rovella at drovella@bloomberg.net

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