The number of satellites launched to provide militaries and government defense organizations with intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data from space is expected to increase more than fourfold during the next decade, according to industry consultancy Novaspace.
The forecast points to a dramatic expansion in orbital ISR capacity as governments seek more persistent and timely intelligence.
Novaspace expects defense owned satellites to drive the segment’s future market.
According to data presented by Novaspace Chief Executive Officer Pacôme Révillon, 2,306 defense ISR satellites are expected to reach orbit from 2026 through 2035.
That compares with 485 launched during the decade through 2025.
Révillon presented the figures Tuesday at the Space Defense and Security Summit in Paris.
ost defense ISR satellites launched during the coming decade are expected to operate as parts of constellations rather than as individual satellites.
The projected increase reflects the importance governments now place on collecting intelligence from orbit.
Révillon described ISR as a key priority for most nations and pointed toward greater diversification of assets supporting persistent and real time intelligence.
The war in Ukraine has highlighted the battlefield importance of intelligence gathered from space.
It has also placed attention on whether governments can reliably obtain that information when military operations depend upon it.
A brief halt in United States data sharing during March 2025 further demonstrated the need for governments to maintain assured access to space based intelligence.
The episode also benefited commercial providers of ISR satellites, including Finland’s ICEYE.
Révillon said the world was already largely transparent, but governments are moving toward a wider assortment of assets.
The direction of the market increasingly favors systems capable of delivering intelligence persistently and in real time.
Government spending projections presented by Novaspace show funding rising alongside the planned satellite expansion.
The consultancy forecasts government budgets for space defense will reach $121 billion in 2028, up from $74 billion last year.
