Europe now needs heavy-lift rockets of its own

Europe has reached orbit with a small rocket, a historic step that offers fresh hope for the continent’s space ambitions. But it does not come close to replacing Elon Musk’s Falcon 9.

Space exploration appears to follow two fixed rules, according to the article: Europeans remain years behind the Americans, then eventually catch up and sometimes surpass the model they followed. Europe built the Copernicus Earth-observation satellites and the Galileo navigation system only after comparable U.S. satellite programs had long been operating.

Today, both European programs rank among the best in the world in their fields. The same pattern could now emerge in launch services. For years, Europe could do little as Musk’s heavy-lift Falcon 9 took market share from the European Space Agency’s Ariane rocket.

The successful orbital launch by a small European rocket changes the mood, but not the strategic challenge. If Europe wants to expand its independence in space, the article argues, it needs rockets with far greater capacity.