What are Some Ways to Decrease Launch Costs?
Launching into space has always been very expensive. A typical launch cost is $5,000 – $10,000 USD per pound of payload. Launching a 1,000 lb (450 kg) satellite can therefore cost upwards of $10 million USD. Ever since we started launching things into space, scientists have been brainstorming ways to lower launch costs to open up this frontier to more companies, governments, and individuals. However, little progress has been made to date. One of the most expensive things about a space launch is the fuel. For every pound of payload launched into low Earth orbit, 25-50 pounds of fuel is required. Typical rockets are fueled by a combination of liquid hydrogen and oxygen, which both must be kept at very low temperatures using many tons of cryogenic cooling equipment. Think of a rocket as a very expensive refrigerator the size of a tall building. To lower launch costs, one approach is to build a bigger rocket. Thanks to economies of scale, bigger rockets tend to cost less per pound than sma
