Where will space technology take us by 2030, and what does this mean for life on Earth?

Feb 22, 2017

An undated artist's rendering depicts a solar storm hitting Mars and stripping ions from the planet's upper atmosphere in this NASA handout released November 5, 2015.

'More nations are now within reach of space than ever before' Image: REUTERS/NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/Handout via Reuters

George Whitesides

Chairman, Space Advisory Board, Virgin Galactic

Our Impact

The Big Picture

Explore and monitor how Space is affecting economies, industries and global issues

A hand holding a looking glass by a lake

Crowdsource Innovation

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Space

Image: Reuters

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off on a supply mission to the International Space Station from historic launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., February 19, 2017. REUTERS/Joe Skipper TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTSZEN4

Image: REUTERS/Joe Skipper

Image: Reuters

Have you read?

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

More on Space
See all

1:50

This is the most colourful view of the universe yet

The International Space Station has just marked a significant anniversary. Here's what life inside is like

Sean Fleming and Ian Shine

November 8, 2023

These are the space missions to look out for in the 2020s

Ian Shine

September 28, 2023

The ozone layer is on the right path to recovery: Here's how the world made it happen

Simon Torkington

September 15, 2023

This CEO has travelled to space and the deepest ocean floor – here’s how he deals with risk

Simon Torkington

September 14, 2023

The UN wants space regulated 'for all humanity' – here's why

Simon Torkington

September 4, 2023