Editing Small satellite (section)

== History ==
The [[nanosatellite]] and [[microsatellite (spaceflight)|microsatellite]] segments of the satellite launch industry have been growing rapidly in the 2010s. Development activity in the {{convert|1|-|50|kg|abbr=on}} range has been significantly exceeding that in the {{convert|50|-|100|kg|abbr=on}} range.<ref name=swma2014/>

In the {{nowrap|1–50 kg}} range alone, fewer than 15 satellites were launched annually in 2000 to 2005, 34 in 2006, then fewer than 30 launches annually during 2007 to 2011.  This rose to 34 launched in 2012 and 92 launched in 2013.<ref name=swma2014>{{cite report |title=2014 Nano/Microsatellite Market Assessment |date=January 2014 |series=annual market assessment series |page=18 |url=http://www.sei.aero/eng/papers/uploads/archive/SpaceWorks_Nano_Microsatellite_Market_Assessment_January_2014.pdf |access-date=18 February 2014 |publisher=SEI |location=Atlanta, Georgia |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222211907/http://www.sei.aero/eng/papers/uploads/archive/SpaceWorks_Nano_Microsatellite_Market_Assessment_January_2014.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2014}}</ref>

European analyst Euroconsult projects more than 500 smallsats being launched in  2015–2019 with a market value estimated at {{USD|7.4 billion}}.<ref name=pa20150302/>

By mid-2015, many more launch options had become available for smallsats, and rides as [[secondary payload]]s had become both greater in quantity and easier to schedule on shorter notice.<ref name=sn20150612>{{cite news |last1=Foust |first1=Jeff |title=Smallsat Developers Enjoy Growth In Launch Options |url=http://spacenews.com/smallsat-developers-enjoy-growth-in-launch-options/ |access-date=13 June 2015 |work=Space News |date=12 June 2015}}</ref>

In a surprising turn of events, the [[U.S. Department of Defense]], which had for decades procured heavy satellites on decade-long procurement cycles, is making a transition to smallsats in the 2020s. The office of space acquisition and integration said in January 2023 that "the era of massive satellites needs to be in the rear view mirror for the Department of Defense"<ref name=sn20230124/> with small satellites being procured for DoD needs in all orbital regimes, regardless of "whether it's [[Low Earth orbit|LEO]] [[Medium Earth orbit|MEO]] or [[Geosynchronous equatorial orbit|GEO]]" while aiming for procurements in under three years.<ref name=sn20230124/>  The smaller satellites are deemed to be harder for an enemy to target, as well as providing more resilience through redundancy in the design of a large [[decentralization|distributed network]] of [[Satellite constellation|satellite assets]].<ref name=sn20230124>{{cite news |title=Space Force not buying large satellites for the foreseeable future |url=https://spacenews.com/space-force-not-buying-large-satellites-for-the-foreseeable-future/ |last=Erwin|first=Sandra |work=SpaceNews |date=24 January 2023 |access-date=25 January 2023 }}</ref>

In 2021, the first [[autonomous nanosatellites]], part of the  Adelis-SAMSON mission, designed and developed by the [[Technion – Israel Institute of Technology|Technion]] and Rafael in [[Israel]] were launched into space.<ref>{{Cite web |last=David |first=Ricky Ben |date=2021-03-22 |title=In First, 3 Israeli Nanosatellites Launch Into Space For Geolocation Mission |url=https://nocamels.com/2021/03/3-israeli-nanosatellites-space-mission/ |access-date=2024-06-25 |website=NoCamels |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2023, SpaceX launched a 20cm quantum communication nano satellite developed by the [[Tel Aviv University]], it is the world's first quantum communication satellite.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=4 January 2023 |title=Israeli quantum communication nanosatellite launched into orbit by SpaceX rocket |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-quantum-communication-nanosatellite-launched-into-orbit-by-spacex-rocket/}}</ref> TAU's nanosatellite is designed to form a quantum communication network as well as communicate with Earth through an optical ground station.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.jns.org/israeli-nanosatellite-a-breakthrough-in-quantum-communications/|title=Israeli nanosatellite a breakthrough in quantum communications - JNS.org}}</ref>