Space Race Heats Up: Europe’s Bid for Autonomy, Starlink’s Global Surge, and the New Era of Satellite Power / Updated: 2025, July 11th, 00:31 CET
In 2024 the US conducted 154 orbital launches, while Europe managed only three, underscoring Europe’s push to establish launch facilities in Sweden and Norway for continental autonomy. Starlink now has over 7,500 satellites in orbit and 5 million users, and operates on 1,000 aircraft, including 54 Qatar Airways Boeing 777s. France and the UK each invested over €163 million in Eutelsat, making France the largest shareholder and the UK holding a 10.9% stake, to expand Eutelsat’s LEO fleet and support Europe’s IRIS² project. Amazon’s Kuiper project is projected to generate $7.1 billion in consumer revenue by 2032, with about $23