New Report Finds That China's Space Program Is Rapidly Outstripping NASA

"By 2024, the report claims, it'd invested $2.86 billion, the vast majority of which came from central, municipal, or provincial governments. Indeed, in 2024, China has made rapid progress on its lunar and planetary exploration programs, which it shares with international space agencies through initiatives like the International Lunar Research Station (in fact, the country even shares lunar samples with the US, despite tensions between the two countries that preclude virtually all collaboration in space research.)"

"Posed as a "risk assessment" of the pressure Chinese competition puts on "American influence" in space, the report paints a stark picture. "China's decade of steady progress in space is now reshaping the competitive landscape and may soon challenge US leadership and commercial strength," it reads. "The risks extend beyond technology to markets, partnerships, and governance, signaling a pivotal moment in global space competition.""

The sitting US government is stripping NASA of expert leadership and funding, reducing U.S. institutional capacity in space. The Commercial Space Federation identifies rapid growth in China's commercial space investment, from $340 million in 2015 to $2.86 billion in 2024, primarily funded by central and local governments. China advanced lunar and planetary exploration in 2024, pursuing international partnerships such as the International Lunar Research Station and even sharing lunar samples with the United States despite broader tensions. China's visible achievements, including a lunar far-side sample return, are shifting markets, partnerships, governance norms, and posing a strategic challenge to U.S. leadership and commercial strength.

Read at Futurism