Grimes finds solace in The Communist Manifesto after her split from Elon Musk, but what can she learn from reading Marx and Engels? A political theorist explains.
Thousands of the satellites orbiting Earth are small – like this cubical satellite seen here being released from the International Space Station.
NASA
In the past decade, the number of satellites in orbit has skyrocketed thanks to tiny electronics and cheap launches. The crowded night sky is posing problems for astronomers and astronauts.
The James Webb Space Telescope is the biggest orbital telescope ever built and is scheduled to be launched into space on Dec. 18, 2021.
NASA/Desiree Stover
The largest orbital telescope ever made will allow astronomers to study the atmospheres of alien planets, learn about how stars form in the Milky Way and peer into the farthest reaches of the universe.
Four people – none of them trained astronauts – launched into orbit aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule on Sept. 15, 2021.
NASA Johnson/Flickr
The Inspiration4 mission sent four civilians to space for three days. Though still funded by a billionaire, the mission is a step forward in the nascent space tourism industry.
An artist’s rendition of a future space colony.
(Shutterstock)
Billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are in a space race, but their endeavours reflect a colonial mentality. This comes at the expense of finding solutions for our current environmental challenges.
Both Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson successfully rode to space on rockets made by their private companies Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, respectively.
AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez
Joseph Cabosky, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
According to a new poll, people across political and demographic lines think the private space race is good for the future but still just an ego trip for the billionaires involved.
In the coming decades, governments and private companies will set up permanent bases on the Moon and Mars. And at some point, the first galactic baby will be born.
Biak inhabitants fear a new space project of Elon Musk, if it goes ahead, will damage their environment, cultures and livelihoods, and potentially displace local communities.
Astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson on the International Space Station with a view many more are likely to see soon.
NASA/Tracy Caldwell Dyson/WIkimediaCommons
The first space tourist left Earth 20 years ago aboard a Russian rocket. Now, private companies like Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin are offering trips to the stars for those who can pay.
Space tourism has been slow to get off the ground.
Nadia Bormotova/iStock via Getty Images Plus
The first space tourist left Earth 20 years ago aboard a Russian rocket. Now, private companies are on the cusp of offering trips off Earth for those who can pay.
A capsular spacecraft, similar to this, will bring Crew Dragon into space.
3Dsculptor/ Shutterstock
Space mining might be closer than you think. But legal issues about the ownership of space resources must be urgently addressed to avoid space wars over natural resources.
We’ve already sent probes to land on Mars. The challenge now is to get people there and bring them home again.
A photo taken from the International Space Station in 2014 shows the Soyuz TMA-15M spacecraft on the left and the unpiloted ISS Progress 57 cargo craft. Six years later, private players have joined the space race.
Picryl
Over the coming decade, the arrival of constellations of small satellites will reshape the space industry. It constitutes a paradigm shift, particularly in terms of data gathering and processing.
Professeur senior d’analyse financière, d’audit et de risk management - Directrice de Programme pour le MSc Fashion Design & Luxury Management- Responsable de la spécialisation MBA "Brand & Luxury Management", Grenoble École de Management (GEM)