Cosmic Rivalry

The sudden exclusion of Chinese nationals from America’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is more than an administrative directive.

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It is the clearest signal yet that the contest for dominance beyond Earth has entered a new and more combative phase. Space, once heralded as a realm for cooperative exploration, is now treated as a strategic frontier where access, data, and talent are guarded as tightly as any terrestrial military base.

For decades, the pursuit of science was supposed to rise above national rivalry. American and Soviet astronauts once shook hands in orbit; this was at the height of the Cold War. But the latest restrictions underscore how dramatically that ideal has eroded.