Plus: A strategy for American and African space partnership
By Dan Robitzski
Welcome back to our weekly newsletter highlighting the opinions and perspectives of the SpaceNews community.
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Space weather such as solar storms can disrupt electrical systems on Earth, and it can damage satellites or alter their orbits, creating downstream problems. As the AI industry looks to megaconstellations of orbital data center as a solution to the power and environmental constraints of terrestrial data centers, leaders must take space weather seriously. That's the warning issued in a recent commentary by Scott McIntosh, vice president of space operations for Lynker Space and former deputy director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research.
"AI is changing our world in ways we have only begun to imagine, becoming increasingly integral not just to online research and business productivity, but also to defense systems, cybersecurity, logistics networks, and critical infrastructure," McIntosh wrote. "As that dependence grows, the grid’s resilience against space weather becomes both an economic and a national security imperative."
"Another major solar storm will eventually strike. The companies building the future of AI should be among the loudest voices pushing to ensure our energy infrastructure is ready for it."
Read the full SpaceNews opinion article here. |
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If America wants to maintain leadership and especially space authority around the world, it must change its approach to diplomacy throughout Africa, lest it cede influence to China, according to a commentary article by Philip Dackiw, a researcher at the American Foreign Policy Council. Dackiw argued that China's aggressive investment in trade and infrastructure with development will outpace America's historically aid-focused relationship with African nations. However, Africa's growing space industry presents a new opportunity for the U.S.
"If Washington is committed to realizing 'America First in Africa,' it should not attempt to match China’s current monopoly over African infrastructure projects. Instead, it needs to pursue a comparative-advantage strategy that prioritizes engagement with sectors where the U.S. remains the undisputed global leader," Dackiw wrote.
"To capitalize on this moment, Washington should direct funding towards chokepoints in the African space industry that are characterized by high barriers of replacement and therefore generate early path dependence."
Read the full SpaceNews commentary article here.
SpaceNews is committed to publishing our community’s diverse perspectives. Whether you’re an academic, executive, engineer or even just a concerned citizen of the cosmos, send your arguments and viewpoints to opinion (at) spacenews.com to be considered for publication online or in our next magazine. If you have something to submit, read some of our recent opinion articles and our submission guidelines to get a sense of what we’re looking for. The perspectives shared in these opinion articles are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent their employers or professional affiliations. |
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