The State of Launch & OSAM (Payload Editorial)

Pathfinder

Pathfinder is shaking things up for the next two weeks with a special pod series on the State of the Space Industry. In each episode, you’ll hear from two members of Payload’s editorial staff on key trends, exclusive interviews, and insights shaping the industry.

This week? Launch & OSAM, featuring Payload’s Managing Editor Jacqueline Feldscher and Senior Space Reporter Tim Fernholz. Highlights from the discussion include:

Launch

• Launch cadence + increasing demand
• Role of launch providers and competition
• Challenges including space debris and regulation
• Advancements in reusability

OSAM

• The OSAM chicken-and-egg problem
• The role of government partnerships and regulations
• Key technologies required for OSAM
• Recent developments and upcoming missions, including Northrop Grumman's MRV mission, Astroscale's ADRAS-J mission, and SpaceX's Starship refueling demonstrations

And much more…

This episode is brought to you by the Italian Trade Agency (ITA). Be sure to check out the Italian Pavilion in South Hall (Booth 603) during Space Symposium!

• Chapters •

00:00 - Intro & ITA Ad

01:35 - The state of launch in 2023

04:14 - Peter Beck & Rocket Lab

06:31 - Tory Bruno & ULA

11:43 - Tim Ellis & Relativity Space

14:09 - Make or break in launch

15:27 - Government’s perspective on launch outside SpaceX

17:46 - What Jacqueline is excited for in 2024

19:07 - Blue Origin & ULA

21:41 - Tim Fernholz!

22:28 - OSAM. What is it and what companies fall underneath the OSAM umbrella?

24:22 - Core capabilities

25:19 - OSAM market in 2023

25:59 - Challenges of building

27:10 - Gaps in technology

29:53 - Should startups be investing in OSAM technology?

32:21 - How integral is the government in developing OSAM?

34:13 - Who is setting standards?

35:42 - OSAM 1

37:56 - What Tim is excited for in 2024

• Show notes •

Jacqueline’s socials — https://twitter.com/jacqfeldscher

Tim’s socials — https://twitter.com/TimFernholz

Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam

Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace

Pathfinder archive — Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@payloadspace Pathfinder archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/episodes

• About us •

Pathfinder is brought to you by Payload, a modern space media brand built from the ground up for a new age of space exploration and commercialization. We deliver need-to-know news and insights daily to 19,000+ commercial, civil, and military space leaders. Payload is read by decision-makers at every leading new space company, along with c-suite leaders at all of the aerospace & defense primes. We’re also read on Capitol Hill, in the Pentagon, and at space agencies around the world.

Payload began as a weekly email sent to a few friends and coworkers. Today, we’re a team distributed across four time zones and two continents, publishing five media properties across multiple platforms:

1) Payload, our flagship daily newsletter, sends M-F @ 9am Eastern

2) Pathfinder publishes weekly on Tuesday mornings (pod.payloadspace.com)

3) Polaris, our weekly policy briefing, publishes weekly on Tuesdays

4) Payload Research, our weekly research and analysis piece, comes out on Wednesdays

You can sign up for all of our publications here: https://payloadspace.com/subscribe/