Space is no longer an American sphere. Chinese astronauts emerge after landing on September 28.

As the stock market nosedives and banks line up for government bailouts, the American model of free-market capitalism is undergoing a crisis of faith. With an election looming, is it fair to expect a new president to undo the damage from a financial collapse that most say was caused by mismanagement and greed?
“People have lost their confidence, Gil Colon, a sales manager for a high-end art and furniture store in Las Vegas, told The Times on October 6. “They have no buying power. They are losing their retirements, their vacation funds, and they are scared to commit to buying anything.
While Americans fret over their jobs, their homes and their futures, they are also looking over their shoulders at emerging powers. A CNN poll in July found that 70 percent of Americans feared China’s economic might and influence.
In a New York Times article in July, Stephen Kotkin quoted the author Robert Kagen from his book “The Return of History and the End of Dreams. “Thanks to decades of remarkable growth, Mr. Kagan writes, “the Chinese today can argue that their model of economic development, which combines an increasingly open economy with a closed political system, can be a successful option for development in many nations.
Like China, Russia has shown that free elections and market capitalism are not the only model for prosperity, a model that is now under attack as the American meltdown spreads to the economies of Western Europe. And authoritarianism does not necessarily translate into a restive populace.
While President Bush’s approval rating has plummeted to 22 percent, among the lowest in United States history, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin of Russia enjoys an approval rating of 70 percent.
“Russia is rising, Artyem Bychkov, a cafe worker outside Moscow, told The Times’s Anne Barnard, this summer after his nation invaded Georgia.
Of course, not all Russians are happy with Mr. Putin’s iron hand, and China’s lack of transparency and corruption has led to scandals in the safety of their food and drugs. But China, along with Russia and the United States, joined another exclusive club last month when one of its astronauts walked in space.
The United States long set the standard for space exploration as a measure of superpower achievement. Looking to relive the past glories of the Apollo moon-landing years, NASA is envisioning a permanent base on the moon, and even a voyage to Mars. But for a fiveyear period beginning in 2010, America astronauts will be reduced to hitchhiker status.
As John Schwartz reported in The New York Times, NASA’s replacement for the shuttle, the Ares/Orion, won’t be ready to fly until 2015. With the shuttle retiring in two years, American astronauts will pay for rides on Russian rockets during the five-year gap. It could be an uneasy partnership.
Senator Bill Nelson of Florida called the situation inexcusable,” in an interview with Mr. Schwartz. “We’ve got a Russian prime minister who believes he’s a czar, he added, referring to Mr. Putin.
Meanwhile, China’s manned space program is ascendant, with its own grand ambitions for a lunar mission.
As Mr. Schwartz reported, an American congressman last year suggested naming the first lunar base after Neil Armstrong. Another lawmaker, Tom Feeney, Republican of Florida, responded: “What makes you think the Chinese are going to give us permission to name their base after one of our astronauts?