Spain


2009 – Spanish Government Space Budget – Snapshot

The Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (INTA), the primary organization responsible for space activities in Spain, oversaw a budget of €## million (US$## million) in 2009. This budget included €## million (US$## million) in appropriations from Spain’s national budget, and €## million (US$## million) in expected revenue from other sources, including INTA’s own commercial operations. The 2009 INTA appropriation from the Spanish national budget is essentially unchanged from the previous year.

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2009 – European Space Agency Budget – Snapshot

With 18 member states, ESA had a 2009 budget of €## billion (US$## billion), approximately ##% more than the 2008 budget of €## billion (US$## billion). The largest ESA funding line items are the Ariane and Vega launch vehicles, at ##% of ESA’s 2009 budget, and Earth observation activities at ##% of the budget, including projects such as the European Remote Sensing series of satellites, the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity satellite, and the new Sentinel series of satellites to be developed in connection with GMES.

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2008 – Cosmic Discovery: A Look Ahead

Two competing influences shape the near-term prospects of space astronomy: the burgeoning worldwide development of astronomical technology and human talent, and the decrease in governmental support for basic science brought on by economic and fiscal pressures. Probably the most significant event … Thank you for visiting The Space Report! The Authoritative Guide to Global Space…

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Helping the Blind Get Around

A prototype project in Europe uses GPS signals to guide visually impaired individuals to their destinations. Tested in Madrid, this European Space Agency (ESA) project — developed in partnership with the Spanish firm GMV Sistemas and the Spanish National Organization of the Blind — uses a handheld device with headphones to give auditory directions to a visually impaired user.

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2006 – Space Industry Demographics – Snapshot

Although new hiring statistics are not uniformly available for other major civil space programs or international companies, steady growth in the global space industry over the past five years suggests that demand for skilled S&E workers with space-relevant skills exists around the world.

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2005 – Data Communications

Data communications services include very small aperture terminal (VSAT) services, Internet backhaul, direct-to-home broadband, and mobile data.

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2005 – ISS

The largest in-space platform ever constructed is the International Space Station (ISS). “Led by the United States, the ISS draws upon the scientific and technological resources of 16 nations: Canada, Japan, Russia, 11 nations of the European Space Agency [Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom], and Brazil,” according to NASA.

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2005 – Government Space Budgets Overview

Non-U.S. military estimates, which are for 2004, include the following countries: United Kingdom, France, Russia, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy, and Israel. China’s budget includes both military and civil expenditures. Note that the estimate of China’s space budget is controversial. At a NASA budget hearing in April 2006, much of the discussion was about the possible size of China’s space program and its ability to complete its plans to land astronauts on the Moon in 2017.

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