When SpaceX first launched reusable rockets, people clapped. When Starlink began providing global internet coverage from orbit, people realized — space wasn’t just for astronauts anymore.

We’re witnessing the commercialization of the cosmos. Satellite networks now beam connectivity into deserts, oceans, and warzones. AI-powered telescopes scan for exoplanets, while asteroid-mining startups pitch investors on extracting platinum from space rocks. It sounds absurd until you remember — every great leap in tech once sounded absurd.

The new space race isn’t about planting flags. It’s about data. Every satellite is a node in a vast, extraterrestrial network — a mirror of the internet, but above the clouds. Governments and private firms alike are scrambling to claim their slice of orbital real estate.

But there’s a dark side too: orbital debris. Thousands of defunct satellites now drift through space, threatening future missions and astronauts alike. Without regulation, our digital sky could turn into a scrapyard.

Still, humanity has always looked up. Space tech is the new frontier of connection, economy, and imagination. And if the 20th century was defined by the internet, the 21st will be defined by the intranet of the stars.