The Most Profound Industrial Revolution Is Underway In Low-Earth Orbit

Written By: Tom Vice

While the exploration of deep space is critical to advancing our understanding of so many unanswered questions about the universe and our place in it, it is equally as critical that the United States government and private industry work together to lead the commercialization of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO), and capture the resulting massive new space economy.

As I wrote in The Washington Post previously, the most profound chapter in human history is the industrial revolution happening in LEO, just 250 miles above our heads. We are at a turning point for our civilization, pivoting from 60 years of space exploration to a new era of unprecedented economic activity, manufacturing and growth in space. This burgeoning epoch is called the Orbital Age®, and it will drive a new trillion-dollar industry.

We are on the cusp of the full commercialization of space as the businesses and factories of the Orbital Age establish a permanent human presence in LEO. Microgravity, higher radiation levels and a near-vacuum state provide an extraordinary environment that will enable discoveries that can improve life on Earth. As explorers, we will always stargaze and wonder about other worlds, but as stewards of this planet, we must look back on it from space and ask ourselves what we can do to help.