The ‘rocket revolution’ opened access to outer space

Reusable rockets, commercial launch providers, startups, university teams, and new national space players contribute to a rapidly growing space sector.

That shift is what this year is all about World Space Week theme, Rocket revolutionwhich explores how new technologies, falling launch costs, and a growing number of actors are changing access to space.

World Space Week, celebrated annually October 4 to 10 since 1999, brings together students, scientists, educators, space professionals and enthusiasts from around the world.

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A new era of access to space

Expanding access brings new opportunities for countries to use space technologies to meet national priorities, support sustainable development, and grow their economies.

“Now more and more countries, institutions and communities have the opportunity to use space for science, Earth observation, communications and solutions to challenges on Earth,” said Aarti Holla-Maini, head of the Space Agency. United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA).

Satellites support communications, navigation, weather forecasting, disaster response, environmental monitoring and many other services that humans rely on every day.

At the same time, the rapidly growing commercial space sector is creating new opportunities for businesses, researchers and entrepreneurs. Many countries want to join the global space economy and move towards a trillion-dollar industry by 2030.

For countries and communities that have historically had fewer opportunities to participate in space activities, this growth opens new pathways to build expertise, develop local space industries, and benefit from an expanding space economy.

Make space more accessible

Access is not just about who can launch rockets, it is also about who has the knowledge, skills, infrastructure and opportunities to participate in the space sector, and who can contribute to shaping its future.

This is an important part of UNOOSA’s work, which helps developing countries, institutions and individuals in developing countries in the space sector gain access to space-related technologies, facilities, research opportunities and capacity building.

In an effort to build the knowledge and skills needed to participate in the space sector, the UN agency supports various initiatives, including Access to Space for All, Global Space Law Project, Space4Women And Space4Youth.

As access to space expands, the UN is working to ensure that all countries and communities can benefit from it, including those who do not have the resources to reach orbit themselves.

The following is a snapshot of activities over the past year:

• Hands-on satellite development training for aspiring aerospace engineers through the KiboCUBE Academy
• Astronaut training at NASA Space Camp for young people selected through the Space4Youth competition
• Satellite launch and deployment opportunities through programs such as KiboCUBE, Payload Hosting Initiative, and EXOpod
• Targeted space legal advisory missions to countries developing their national space laws and policies

What is space law? Find out below:

More access means more responsibility

Changes in the space sector also raise questions about how activities beyond Earth are regulated.

The Committee for the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), founded in 1959, is the United Nations body tasked with promoting international cooperation in the exploration and peaceful uses of outer space, and the world’s leading multilateral forum for space governance.

Its work may not always make headlines like a rocket launch, but many of the questions discussed there will influence what space activity will look like in the years to come.

“Greater access to space also brings greater responsibility,” said UNOOSA chief Holla-Maini. “As more actors reach orbit, international cooperation becomes more important, not less.”

Space traffic to lunar activity

As more countries and companies operate in space, COPUOS addresses issues ranging from coordinating lunar activities and space traffic to the use of nuclear power sources in space, space debris, and the use of space resources.

In 2025, for example, the committee created a Space Situational Awareness Expert Group to strengthen international cooperation and information sharing as activity in orbit increases.

The Lunar Activities Consultation Action Team is also reviewing how countries can better coordinate the increasing amount of activity on and around the Moon.

With more actors, more technologies, and more activity in orbit and beyond, the questions of international access and cooperation that are at the heart of this year’s World Space Week are likely to become even more important.