On Nov. 8, the U.S. elected Donald Trump its next president, as well as a Republican House and Senate. Aviation Week editors explain how they think those dynamics will shape the nation’s policy and spending choices in the short term and the long run.

As the Schiaparelli Mars lander investigation progresses, ESA and the European Commission take a step toward integrating space policies.

In this week’s Washington Outlook, the Pentagon acquisition chief defends procurement reforms; the FAA maintains a ban on flights over Ukraine; and insiders speculate who will lead Senate space policies.

Keep NASA pointed toward Mars, bring China into the fold and don’t let climate-change deniers kill Earth science.

New NASA facility will simulate SLS launch loads, while planners study flight tests for secondary payloads.

Using rockets over and over like airplanes can hold down launch costs, but it will take a lot of launches to overcome the cost and weight penalties.

Two years after a fatal SpaceShipTwo crash, Virgin Galactic looks to move forward, confident about upcoming glide tests with an improved rocket motor.

Virgin Galactic test pilots have developed procedures that greatly improve takeoff and balanced field length performance of the WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft.