The answer to Russia's threats is a new trillion-dollar technological industry

"Recent events in Ukraine and our dependence on the Russians for transportation to the space station [make it] even more important to revive our space program."

That's what Gene Hrush, former head of the propulsion and power group at NASA's Johnson Space Center, said in a series of articles published by Fox News earlier this year. But why is it so "important" for the USA to "revive" its cosmonautics? What has released this urgency, and what are America's space exploration companies doing to fix it?

The main stimulus for NASA's desire to free itself from Russian "dependence" was the threat expressed in Washington earlier this year by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin. Responding to the sanctions that Washington promised to impose on Russia in connection with the latter's invasion of Crimea, Rogozin promised that Moscow would cut off sales of its "RD 180" missile engines for use by the American armed forces (Russia may rethink this position - or not). .

It is still an open question why the RD 180 rocket engine is such a huge factor.

This is America's secret weapon

It is difficult to overestimate how radical the new 3D printing technology is. However, today, it is already in the service of the US Air Force, BMW and even Nike to create new products. Respected publications like "The Economist" compared this "explosive" invention to a steam engine and a printing press; "Business Insider" calls it "the next trillion dollar industry".

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