COLORADO SPRINGS — Washington is converging on a central premise in space policy: the U.S. must spend more, move faster and coordinate better to stay ahead of China. What remains unsettled is whether the system in place can deliver on that ambition.

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Sandra Erwin writes about military space programs, policy, technology and the industry that supports this sector. She has covered the military, the Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for nearly two decades as editor of NDIA’s National Defense...