China aims to build a commercial space launch industry with $8 billion in funding to compete with SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic. The Chinese government has loosened its monopoly on space launches and opened the industry to private investment in 2014. More than 60 Chinese companies have entered the commercial space sector in recent years. China wants to be one of the top three aerospace powers by 2030 as part of its Belt and Road initiative to build international ties. The government investment and private sector development will allow China to focus on ambitious goals like landing astronauts on the moon.

1. China’s Space Program Is
Coming for E.Musk & J. Bezos
4. Space Exploration – Next?
p4

2. 1. vocabulary
Bids (l. 5)
An upstart (l. 7)
Disrupt (l. 7)
Launchpad (l. 7)
Loosen (l. 7)
Tap into (l. 10)
Rely on (l.11)
Vie (l. 21 vying – compare die > dying)
Scheduled (l. 24)
Shift focus (l. 25)

3. 2. what?
‘With an $8 billion national space budget, China wants to build a
commercial launch industry to join the ranks ofWestern leaders such as
SpaceX, Blue Origin, andVirgin Galactic.
>The new players of the space industry – famous entrepreneurs likeJ.
Bezos, R. Branson & E. Must – have new competitors, Chinese – private –
companies

4. 3. New phenomenon
China wants to build a commercial launch industry (l. 1)
[Emerging (l. 4) + Pioneers (l. 6)]
upstart (l. 7)
that’s fueling the formation of small domestic companies (l. 8)
startups (l. 10) +We are really a startup growing on the shoulders of the
state aerospace giant (l. 12)
Xi opened the space market to private-sector investment in 2014 (l. 25)
More than 60 Chinese companies have entered the commercial space
industry in the past three years (l. 26-7)

5. 4. how?
President Xi Jinping has loosened the government’s monopoly on
space launches (l. 7) + Xi opened the space market to private-sector
investment in 2014 (l. 25)
a deep-pocketed upstart (l. 7) > China has a lot of money to invest
They can also rely on the expertise of rocket scientists from China’s
vigorous manned space program. (l. 11-2)
Chinese launchers could help manufacturers seeking an inexpensive
way to get even more of them into orbit (l. 15-6)
[not ‘cheaper’ (l.4) which refers toWestern entrepreneurs]
One lucrative payload for the Chinese could be miniature satellites, (…)
a niche where big players (…), have been less active (l. 17-20)

6. 5. why?
(CE > réponses trouvées dans le texte)
China wants to be one of the world’s top three aerospace powers by
2030 (l. 31)
[part of] the “Belt and Road” initiative, his program to build ties
throughoutAfrica, Asia, and Europe by funding infrastructure projects
“Government investment alone isn’t enough,”Wu says. And leaving
commercial efforts to private companies also lets the government
focus on prestigious quests such as landing Chinese “taikonauts” on the
moon by the 2030s. (l. 34-5)
…

7. 5. why?
(Réponses commentées)
China wants to be one of the world’s top three aerospace powers by 2030 (l. 31)
> ‘China’ = the Chinese government >They are determined to achieve this ambition, do
anything they can and particular they are ready to put a lot of money into this.
[part of] the “Belt and Road” initiative, his program to build ties throughout Africa, Asia, and
Europe by funding infrastructure projects
> China’s space program is part of the “Belt and Road” initiative (known in French as ‘la
nouvelle route de la soie’.) –You have to think about their motives >
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nouvelle_route_de_la_soie or in English:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/12/the-900bn-question-what-is-the-belt-and-
road-initiative or https://www.theguardian.com/cities/ng-interactive/2018/jul/30/what-
china-belt-road-initiative-silk-road-explainer
“Government investment alone isn’t enough,”Wu says. And leaving commercial efforts to
private companies also lets the government focus on prestigious quests such as landing
Chinese “taikonauts” on the moon by the 2030s. (l. 34-5)
> Public sector > prestige + Private sector > development of this industry

8. 6. Graph

9. 6. Graph – what does it prove about
‘places & forms of power’?
Les réponses à cette question sont libres mais il faut
▪ savoir ce qu’il présente (Orbital launch attempts) et représente
▪ faire attention aux couleurs (Military / Civil government / Commercial)
et voir que la couleur rouge n’est pas présente partout (c’est en partie le
sujet du texte p.4 et de la vidéo p.3)
▪ comparer ce graphique à ceci >
(Source : wikipedia.org)
▪ NB : la présence de la Russie dans le graphique
s’explique par des raisons historiques (cf. the
space race p.1)