As Jonathan Roll neared completion of a master’s degree in science and technology policy at Arizona State University three years ago, he did some research into recent developments by China’s ascendant space program. He came away impressed by the country’s growing ambitions.

Now a full-time research analyst at the university, Roll was recently asked to take a deeper dive into Chinese space plans.

“I thought I had a pretty good read on this when I was finishing grad school,” Roll told Ars. “That almost everything needed to be updated, or had changed three years later, was pretty scary. On all these fronts, they’ve made pretty significant progress. They are taking all of the cues from our Western system about what’s really galvanized innovation, and they are off to the races with it.”

Read full article

Comments

Origianl Creator:
Eric Berger

Original Link: https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/09/a-new-report-finds-chinas-space-program-will-soon-equal-that-of-the-us/
Originally Posted: Tue, 16 Sep 2025 16:22:38 +0000