The Space Report 2025 Q1 Shows Growing Need for Skilled Labor in Space Workforce, Budget Concerns for U.S. Space Force, and Highlights Space Pharmaceuticals Investments

Written by: Space Foundation Editorial Team

• Space sector employment grows 18% over five years
• S. Space Force FY25 budget cut by $50 million
• FAA works to streamline launch and reentry license application process

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — April 7, 2025 — Space Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1983 to advance the global space community, released The Space Report 2025 Q1, which shows space sector employment growth outpaced U.S. private sector growth. In the last decade, overall private sector employment increased 14.3%, while space sector employment increased 27%. Five-year growth for the industry has been even more significant, with employment increasing 18% from 2019 to 2024.

The most recent year salary data, from 2023, shows the average private U.S. space industry salary was $135,000. This is 3.1% more than the average space salary of $131,000 in 2022 and nearly double the average private sector wage in the United States, which was $72,608 in 2023.

As the launch cadence increases globally, space companies are inundated with more data and an increased need to diversify their workforce — creating a growing demand for applicants with skills in computer science and data analysis. According to data from the U.S. Department of Labor, information security analyst job demand is projected to grow 32% over the next eight years. This metric highlights the growth in satellite proliferation and the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to expedite processing time.

Space Foundation CEO Heather Pringle remarked, “Within the robust data reported in The Space Report 2025 Q1, I see more than numbers — I see a forward-moving U.S. space workforce. It’s outpaced the job and salary growth of the private sector, climbing in recent years, with average salaries well above what other industries offer to attract the talent needed. Moreover, the need for minds skilled in data analysis and security continues to accelerate as the launch cadence picks up from 157 commercial launches last year to a projected 172 in 2025. This workforce evolution, along with continued technological innovation, builds a stronger foundation for the future we’re only beginning to imagine.”

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) licensed 157 commercial spaceflights in 2024 and estimates as many as 172 in 2025. This rapid increase in space launch cadence has placed the spotlight on the FAA as critics say its ability to manage increased launch and reentry license applications is stifling potential growth. The FAA is working to streamline the Part 450 licensing processes and maintains a congressionally mandated 180-day application period.

As the Pentagon works to streamline its processes and cut costs, the Department of Defense will, for the first time, be funded for a full year under a flat budget. However, the U.S. Space Force saw a $50 million cut to its $29 billion FY2024 budget in two appropriations: Procurement as well as Research, Development, Test and Evaluation. The continuing resolution passed in March includes provisions allowing Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to move funding between programs — a capability not granted to other agencies.

Under the continuing resolution, NASA’s budget will also remain flat as experiments in microgravity continue. Redwire Space bio-printed its first live human heart tissue aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and successfully returned the sample to Earth. As the benefits of microgravity become more widely known, pharmaceutical companies are expanding their interest beyond research to manufacturing drugs in orbit. Launched to the ISS in November 2023, Redwire’s Pharmaceutical In-space Laboratory Bio-crystal Optimization eXperiment (PIL-BOX) has served as a dedicated platform for this research with partners including Eli Lilly and Bristol Myers Squibb.

About The Space Report

The Space Report, published by Space Foundation since 2006, is the authoritative report on the global space ecosystem, covering space exploration, global space spending, defense programs, commercial space trends, workforce development, launch and payload deployment, space innovation, and other key industry indicators. It is an unparalleled resource for policy analysts, congressional staff, investors, researchers, and space industry professionals and newcomers. The Space Report is available as a quarterly digital publication and as an online subscription for expanded research, interactive data, analysis, and white papers. Visit The Space Report at thespacereport.org.

About Space Foundation

Space Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1983 as a gateway to advance the global space community. Space Foundation uniquely educates, collaborates and informs the entire space workforce from early education  through post-secondary (college, non-college, vocational), to the start of their careers as new professionals, and ultimately as leaders at the highest levels of government and commercial industry. As a charitable organization, Space Foundation raises support from corporate members, sponsors, individual giving, and grants. Visit Space Foundation at www.SpaceFoundation.org, and follow us on Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.

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Tags: Space Foundation, The Space Report, Symposium 365, global space economy, space workforce, workforce development, space launch, space technology, space innovation, space ecosystem, space advocate, space commerce, space exploration, space spending, commercial space, space defense, artificial intelligence, space pharmaceuticals

Media Contacts:

Rich Cooper
Vice President, Strategic Communications & Outreach
Space Foundation
(202) 596-0714
[email protected]

Dottie O’Rourke
TECHMarket Communications
(650) 344-1260
[email protected]

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