Europe must play to win—not just play nice—in a new space race, argues ESA’s boss
Josef Aschbacher, the European Space Agency’s director-general, says keeping up is not enough
SEEING SPACEX’s super-heavy-lift Starship soar into the skies on October 13th, and then its reusable booster fly back to the launch pad in a world first, filled me with awe. NASA, America’s space agency, plans to use a human-rated version of the rapid-launch vehicle to return astronauts to the Moon in a couple of years. China—which has made astonishing strides—aims to put people on the lunar surface by 2030. India hopes to do the same by 2040. A new space race is under way.
From the October 19th 2024 edition
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Three presidents on the partnerships that can at last transform Africa
Success teeters on bold, stable funding, say Julius Maada Bio, Lazarus Chakwera and Andry Rajoelina
Assisted-dying advocates’ claims of freedom have it backward, says Danny Kruger
One of a pair of essays in which members of Parliament argue their cases
My assisted-dying bill safely solves a grave injustice, says Kim Leadbeater
One of a pair of essays in which members of Parliament argue their cases
“Middle powers” can thrive in the age of AI, says Eric Schmidt
Google’s former chief executive has a playbook for riding out the revolution
Polls get elections wrong. So use Google, says Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
The data scientist argues that stronger predictions lie in what people search for
War in Ukraine may only intensify under Trump, says Dmytro Kuleba
The country’s former foreign minister explains the powderkeg that is three leaders in a cannot-lose standoff