Europe’s space race enters a new phase with Norway rocket launch

German startup Isar Aerospace is aiming for orbit with its Norway rocket launch, pushing Europe toward space autonomy.

“We are disrupting the space industry,” reads the slogan on its official page. This would be Isar Aerospace’s debut launch, which has been in the pipeline since 2018.

Starlink’s role in Ukraine has become a blunt reminder of its dependency, and Europe wants more control over access to orbit, especially for defence and Earth-observation payloads.

A successful launch would mark a symbolic and practical step toward European space autonomy.

Orbit within reach

The challenges are palpable. Europe still ships most of its satellites 6,000 km to French Guiana for launch at European Space Agency’s (ESA) Kourou spaceport, which is optimized for equatorial orbits but is distant and logistically complex.

In 2025, 324 orbital launches were carried out worldwide – only eight were European. The US conducted 193, China 93, and Russia 17.

Norway’s Andøya Spaceport, along with Sweden’s Esrange and Scotland’s SaxaVord, is trying to change that, focusing on high-latitude launches ideal for polar and sun-synchronous orbits. Andøya is the closest thing Europe has right now to a “live” orbital spaceport.

It is already hosting real attempts. For Isar, this is its second attempt. Its first flight in March 2025 ended with the rocket plunging into the sea. In practical terms, that puts Andøya out in front in terms of both infrastructure and operations.

A rocket day blast. — VCG via Getty Images

Esrange in Sweden and SaxaVord in Shetland are in the same race. Esrange has the long-range pedigree and the facilities, but its orbital moment depends on launcher partners and timelines turning into routine.

SaxaVord has big strategic energy and UK backing, but it is also the most tangled, and the UK’s Virgin Orbit failure in January 2023 is a reminder that a launch site does not equal a launch market.

Meanwhile, Isar company insists the failure of 2025 provided valuable data, and most first launches do meet a watery fate, just ask Rocket Lab or SpaceX.

But if this attempt succeeds, Europe would not only claim a symbolic victory but also signal that it is serious about catching up to the private-sector innovation driving the American space boom.

Hype meets gravity

Viktor Shpakovsky, US-based space-tech investor at Beyond Earth Ventures, gives credit where it’s due to the German project:

“Isar Aerospace is doing well and clearly shows where the space industry is going. Space is becoming more private.”

And with that in mind, Shpakovsky explains that consistency is key: “If Isar can launch regularly and at scale, it will improve Europe’s ability to access space independently, especially for small satellites.”

Shpakovsky also pointed out that the commercial launch market in India is running smoothly, mainly due to clear and consistent government support.

In his view, if Isar’s Spectrum reaches orbit, it is a headline, but not a finished product. “European launch startups are still at the beginning of their journey,” with obvious influences coming into play” but without focusing solely on the blueprint of the market leaders:

“The goal should not be to copy SpaceX directly,” Shpakovsky said, “Europe needs its own model, focused on reliability, security, and specific mission needs.”