The UK should hitch its cosmic wagon to the European space agency and contribute more cash to the intergovernmental body, professor Brian Cox, musician, media luvvie and Manchester University particle physicist, told the UK's second Parliamentary chamber this week.
Professor Brian Cox at the House of Commons on 3 March – click to enlarge (Pic: ©House of Commons)
Professor Brian Cox at the House of Commons on 3 March – click to enlarge (Pic: ©House of Commons)
Speaking to a House of Lords committee addressing the UK's engagement with the space industry, Cox said on Tuesday it would come to dominate the global economy.
The US is a very valuable but difficult partner to base a strategy on, because the funding is unstable...
"Given that over many decades, because of the potential out there, it's going to become, not only one of the largest growth areas — which it already is — but also it's going to become dominant at some point. The question of when it becomes dominant as part of the world economy is a good question, but it will," the TV and radio presenter said.
The space industry accounted for just $630 billion in 2023, according to the consultancy McKinsey.
Estimates suggest world global GDP was around $105 trillion last year, with the space industry making up less than 1 percent of it. Yet McKinsey reckons the space industry will nearly triple in value over the next decade to be worth $1.8 trillion by 2035, accounting for inflation.
It is "self-evident" that the UK should strive to play a leading role in this burgeoning opportunity, Cox said, but it can not do it alone. The UK has so far collaborated with US space agency NASA extremely successfully, contributing instruments to the Hubble space telescope, the James Webb space telescope, the New Horizons Pluto and Kuiper belt mission and the Cassini Saturn mission.
But basing a strategy on the US might be unwise, Cox suggested. "The US is a very valuable but difficult partner to base a strategy on, because the funding is unstable, [and so] the partnerships can be unstable, just because of the way that the funding works with Congress and so on. You're vulnerable to political uncertainty," hsa id.
Cox is the host of the Infinite Monkey Cage science podcast and has presented many internationally syndicated television documentaries.
Based in Paris, the European Space Agency (ESA) is a 23-member intergovernmental body for space exploration. Its 2025 annual budget was set at €7.7 billion.
"The difference to me, between NASA and ESA, is that if you're a major contributor to ESA, then you're part of the decision making process," Cox pointed out.
In 2022, the UK committed £615 million to ESA's core space science budget over a period of years, within an overall commitment of £1.84 billion. However, the UK's contribution outside the core space science budget is "extremely small" compared to other nations, Cox said.
France, Germany, and Italy all contribute more and therefore have the major say in the development of policy. The UK has made an annual contribution of between €420 and €450 million to the ESA over the past few years but slashed its contribution from €448.9 million in the 2024 budget to €320 million in the ESA budget for 2025. France contributed more than a billion euros; Germany put in €951 million; and Italy contributed €800 million. Others also made cutbacks however – Germany put in €1.17 billion in the 2024 budget, shaving off a whopping €220 million to give €951 million. France slightly increased its contribution, however, from €1.048 billion to €1.074 billion.
"The system is, if you put the money in, you get the money back into your industry. So it's essentially an aerospace subsidy in any case. We've been extremely successful and will continue to be in collaborating with not only NASA but countries like India — who have a big emerging space industry.
"However, when you look at the gap in our influence in the decision making process, then I would be looking at ESA just purely because you have control over the decision making process, which you don't have with NASA," Cox told the committee. ®