- Capability group
- Space Technologies
- Domain
- Critical Technology · Hard Power
- Identifier
- factbase.org/cap/CHMWBWW32W
- Reference
- Launch vehicle Wikipedia
Papers
1.7k
2020–2024
Paper growth
−23%
2020–24 on 2015–19
Patent families
4.5k
2020–2024
Filed abroad
13%
families in more than one office
In the framework
What the capability covers and what it leaves to others, and the indicators it will be measured by.
Bounds
Covers launch vehicle and reusability technology; spaceports and ranges belong to Strategic Infrastructure, assured access as an operational outcome to National Security's space group, and commercial launch position reads at the make and control layers.
Lineage
Relocated in v0.1 from the split group (formerly Space launch systems (including launch vehicles and supporting infrastructure)) at the same level, carrying its identifier; supporting infrastructure excised to Strategic Infrastructure, and the capability recast around the reusability frontier where position is now decided.
Indicators
- orbital launches per yearPending
- reusable launch systems in operationPending
- launch cost per kilogram achievedPending
Research
Papers classified to the capability, by year and by the nation of their authors' institutions, 2020–2024. Read from the v0.0 research topic Space launch systems (including launch vehicles and supporting infrastructure).
Papers by year
The five leading nations, papers by year
Share of papers, 2020–2024
Of papers with a known author nation; 43% have none and are left out.
- 1United States22.1%238 papers
- 2China16.4%177 papers
- 3Italy8.0%86 papers
- 4Germany6.6%71 papers
- 5India6.2%67 papers
- 6Russia5.2%56 papers
- 7France3.7%40 papers
- 8Japan3.5%38 papers
- 9United Kingdom3.4%37 papers
- 10South Korea2.3%25 papers
Leading institutions, 2020–2024
By fractional count: each paper divided among its authors' institutions.
- 1Marshall Space Flight Center24fractional papers
- 2Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR)22fractional papers
- 3Northwestern Polytechnical University22fractional papers
- 4Beihang University18fractional papers
- 5China Academy of Space Technology15fractional papers
- 6Sapienza University of Rome14fractional papers
- 7Politecnico di Milano14fractional papers
- 8Polytechnic University of Turin13fractional papers
- 9University of Alabama in Huntsville12fractional papers
- 10Beijing Institute of Technology8fractional papers
Patents
Patent families by the nation of origin of their applicants and their earliest priority year, from the CPC and IPC classes the capability is read from. 2025 onwards is incomplete: families are published 18 months after priority.
Families by priority year
The five leading origins, families by year
861 applicants filed here in 2015–2024; the five largest held 14% of families (HHI 76 of 10,000: unconcentrated).
Share of families by origin, 2020–2024
- 1China72.0%3,208 families
- 2United States8.3%368 families
- 3South Korea5.8%258 families
- 4Japan2.6%115 families
- 5Russia2.5%111 families
- 6Germany1.9%86 families
- 7France1.5%67 families
- 8United Kingdom0.9%40 families
- 9Poland0.6%27 families
- 10Italy0.6%26 families
Applicants filing most internationally, 2015–2024
Families filed in more than one office, by applicant as the offices name them.
- 1ARIANEGROUP SAS102international families
- 2RAYTHEON CO43international families
- 3ARIANEGROUP GMBH38international families
- 4AEROJET ROCKETDYNE INC36international families
- 5AIRBUS SAFRAN LAUNCHERS SAS30international families
- 6BOEING CO30international families
- 7DEUTSCH ZENTR LUFT & RAUMFAHRT23international families
- 8MITSUBISHI HEAVY IND LTD21international families
- 9CENTRE NAT ETD SPATIALES20international families
- 10AIRBUS DS GMBH18international families
Classification read
- B64G1/002 Space launch systems · 4.5k documents
- B64G1/14 Space shuttles and reusable spaceplanes · 1.5k documents
- B64G1/62 Re-entry, retarding and landing systems · 3.1k documents
- B64G5/00 Launch pads, towers and ground fuelling · 2k documents
- F02K9/00 Rocket engines · 54.2k documents
Shares inventions with
Capabilities whose classes the same families also fall in, by overlap (Jaccard).
- Advanced Propulsion & Hypersonic Systems917 families · 0.441
- Satellite & Constellation Technologies382 families · 0.037
- Energetic Materials57 families · 0.033
Companies
50 companies in this capability, across 7 regions. The leading 12:
- 1SpaceXBuilds and operates the reusable Falcon 9/Falcon Heavy with Merlin and Raptor engines and the fully reusable Starship, flying the large majority of the world's orbital launches.Manufacture
- 2China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC)State prime for the Long March family (CZ-2/3/4/5/6/7/8/12) through CALT and SAST, China's main orbital launch provider and developer of reusable Long March variants.Manufacture
- 3Rocket LabFlies the Electron small launcher (with booster recovery trials) from New Zealand and the US and is developing the reusable medium-lift Neutron rocket and Archimedes engine.Manufacture
- 4Blue OriginDevelops the reusable New Glenn heavy launcher and New Shepard suborbital vehicle and supplies BE-4 methane engines that power ULA's Vulcan.Manufacture
- 5RoscosmosState corporation whose enterprises (Progress RSC, Khrunichev, Energomash) build and launch Soyuz-2, Angara and Proton vehicles and RD-series engines.Manufacture
- 6ArianeGroupAirbus-Safran joint venture that is prime contractor for Ariane 6 and the Vulcain/Vinci engines, and parent of reusable-launcher venture MaiaSpace; the top patent applicant in this capability.Manufacture
- 7United Launch AllianceBoeing-Lockheed Martin joint venture flying the Vulcan Centaur and Atlas V for US national-security and NASA missions.Operation
- 8Northrop GrummanSupplies GEM solid rocket boosters for Vulcan and the SLS five-segment boosters, and builds the Minotaur, Pegasus and Antares launch vehicles.Manufacture
- 9L3Harris TechnologiesOwns Aerojet Rocketdyne (acquired 2023), maker of the RS-25 engines for SLS, the RL10 upper-stage engine and solid rocket motors.Equipment & materials
- 10Mitsubishi Heavy IndustriesPrime contractor and launch operator for Japan's H3 (successor to H-IIA) with the LE-9 expander-bleed engine, under JAXA.Manufacture
- 11LandSpaceFirst company to reach orbit with a methane-fuelled rocket (Zhuque-2) and is developing the reusable stainless-steel Zhuque-3.Manufacture
- 12China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC)Through its subsidiary ExPace it builds the Kuaizhou solid-fuel rapid-response launch vehicles.Manufacture