The big ambitions of China’s private space industry

AROUND A DECADE ago Xi Jinping said he dreamed of making China a “space power”. Since then, the country has put a rover on Mars and built one of the two operational space stations orbiting Earth. Now its private space industry aims to make an even bigger impact. China’s companies may, for the first time in their histories, successfully recover the first stage of a rocket—a vital step for slashing launch costs. This would open a galaxy of opportunity. Meanwhile, new private launchpads will be completed, new satellite factories will ramp up production and a new government department will funnel more state resources into the industry.