For decades, the astronomical cost of launching a satellite meant that only government agencies and large corporations ever undertook such a herculean task. But over the last two decades or so, newer, commercial rocket designs that accommodate multiple payloads have reduced launch costs dramatically-from about US $ $ $54,000 per kilogram in 2000 to about $ $ $2,720 in 2018. That trend in turn has fostered a boom in the private satellite industry. Since 2012, the number of small satellites-roughly speaking, those under 50 kilograms-being launched into low Earth orbit (LEO) has increased 30 percent every year.
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Mina Mitry (2020) studied this question.