The billionaire owners of Space X and Blue Origin have competing visions of a space-based future. Elon Musk wants a self-sustaining settlement on Mars as a backup for humanity in case the Earth gets destroyed. Jeff Bezos wants us to move heavy industry and all polluting industries to space to save Earth’s climate, and envisions a trillion humans living in space.

Meanwhile, the United States and China are locked in a race of their own for dominance of space, with Chinese advancements far outpacing America’s. The nuclear-wielding superpowers could wind up competing over territory on the moon and Mars.

Mars, for all its flaws — and there are many, including radiation, dust storms, and unbreathable air — is the only planet in our solar system that’s a candidate for settlement. Its day and ni

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