21st Century Race for Space

A new era of space exploration and exploitation is emerging, with private companies led by a few visionary billionaire entrepreneurs playing a prominent role in advancing human presence beyond Earth. These companies are pursuing not only mass space travel and potential ventures in space mining and manufacturing, but also the broader goal of interplanetary exploration. Elon Musk and others envision a future where humanity becomes a multi-planetary species. His company, SpaceX, is already responsible for delivering cargo to the International Space Station and is preparing to transport astronauts as well. Ultimately, SpaceX aims to support the long-term survival of the human race by enabling human settlement on Mars within the next decade. The growing influence of commercial spaceflight companies raises the question of whether they could ultimately lead humanity toward becoming a space-faring civilization.