Space is changing more rapidly than ever. Technological advancement, lower-cost access to orbit, and massive private investments are driving a wave of space innovation—introducing novel, next-generation capabilities to meet current and emerging operational needs. U.S. government organizations buy, adapt, and adopt commercial products and services, when appropriate, to meet national mission requirements. In alignment with national policy, government organizations are increasingly leveraging commercial capabilities to meet national space mission needs. The demand signal is clear: The U.S. government is eager to rapidly harness the pace of commercial space innovation to improve the nation’s security and prosperity. It can be a challenge, however, for industry to make the connection between commercial capabilities and government needs.

To foster greater collaboration between the U.S. government and commercial space, The Aerospace Corporation launched the Commercial Space Futures initiative. Through Commercial Space Futures, we bring our deep technical expertise and independent insight to facilitate U.S. government access to U.S. commercial space capabilities and incorporate these technologies into U.S. space programs.