The UK hosted its biennial Space Conference in Manchester in July. Once the industrial capital of the country, Manchester also happens to be the birthplace of radio astronomy after Sir Bernard Lovell established the science in 1945.
Attendees at the UK Space Conference 2025 were encouraged to “Behold the SUN”, a large-scale installation of a suspended sphere presenting astrophysical data from NASA’s Solar Dynamic Observatory. The installation is a collaboration between astronomer Professor Robert Walsh and UK artist Alex Rinsler. Courtesy: Farah Ghouri
Organisations and space industry professionals were able to enjoy the history and the well-known red brick architecture of this former northern industrial English city. The conference was even hosted in a former Victorian railway station.
The two-day event took place in Manchester Central, a former train
Courtesy: Farah Ghouri
Among the attendees of the conference was UK Space Agency CEO Dr Paul Bate, who, fittingly, completed his PhD in particle physics at the University of Manchester. With a large student population in the city – a graduation ceremony was even going on across the road – it was fitting that the conference emphasised the need for young talent to enter the space business.
The landscape of the space industry in the UK
A special report, the ‘Size and Health of the UK Space Industry 2024’, was published ahead of the conference. The report revealed that the space sector in the UK generated £18.6bn of income in 2022/23 in real terms – although, notably, this was almost nine percent down from the previous year.
There were over 55,000 people working full-time in the industry in the UK in 2022/23, an increase of 7%. The number of UK organisations and companies involved in space also grew to1,907. Meanwhile, investment into the UK space industry reached £481m.
Matt Turner, an artist whose work is inspired by space, continued to work on his collection at the conference, while onlookers admired his exhibition. Courtesy: Farah Ghouri
The nation has become increasingly reliant on the space industry, with fears over its security. The UK would risk losing about £1 billion per day for the first week alone, if GPS was disrupted, Bate said.
Several new initiatives were announced in Manchester. The UKSA has awarded £4.5 million for four new projects focussed on satellite communications. These include funding for:
- MDA Space UK’s SkyPhi mission to deliver 5G and 6G connectivity capabilities directly to devices via low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites;
- Orbit Fab’s ‘Radical project’ developing in-orbit refuelling systems for telecommunications satellites;
- SSTL’s lunar communications system which will enable deep-space communications capabilities; and
- Viasat’s hybrid GEO-LEO constellation which is designed to provide global 5G Direct-to-Device coverage
Separately, an additional investment of £1.6 million for the UK’s industrial space cluster network was announced. The network consists of regional hubs of space businesses, universities, and other organisations, across the UK.
The UK government published its Industrial Strategy, a 10-year plan to boost economic growth in eight key sectors, in June. Notably, the space sector did not make the cut as one of the these.
However, space was identified as a ‘frontier’ industry underpinning two key sectors: ‘Advanced Manufacturing’ and ‘Digital and Technologies’. It was surprisingly absent from the list of frontier industries regarded as core to ‘Defence’.
UK Space Agency’s relationship with ESA
UK Space Agency CEO Dr Paul Bate and ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher chatting before their ‘fireside chat’ on n international collaboration. Courtesy: Farah Ghouri
In May the European Space Agency (ESA) celebrated its 50th anniversary. The relationship between the UKSA and ESA appeared close as ever. With good reason: Bates said the UK earns over seven pounds for every pound it invests into ESA programmes.
ESA’s 2025 budget is €7.68 billion euros (US$7.91 billion), ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher said.
That said, its share of the global space budget has been gradually falling from 15% in 2019 to 10% in 2024.
While the agency has in the past focussed on civilian projects, Aschbacher said defence was increasingly a priority. He was quick to point out that while ESA will work on projects and research that support the defence of nations, it would not directly work on weapons of aggression.
ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher joined the opening plenary of the conference. Courtesy: Farah Ghouri
ESA’s member states will gather in Bremen, Germany, in November for the agency’s Council at Ministerial Level (CM25) to decide on the future of European space programmes and funding. The meeting only takes place roughly every three to four years – the last one took place in 2022 (in Paris). Much has changed in the realm of geopolitics since then so the upcoming ministerial will be of some interest for the UKSA.
