RLV and Space Transport News � Entrepreneurial Space Transportation Industry Consensus Statement

Transporting a payload into space currently takes years of lead-time and costs a great deal. Despite those barriers, the unique nature of space has dictated that some space applications conducted in, from and through space have become essential to our nation. Growing dependency on these space-based assets has led U.S. policymakers not only to support baseline investments in traditional space launch systems, but also to pursue transformational capabilities to replace or supplement those assets in a more timely and affordable way. Some call this Operationally Responsive Space (ORS).