A German rocket has crossed the threshold into space, marking the first time a German-built vehicle has achieved orbit and signaling Europe's renewed resolve to claim a seat in an industry long shaped by American and Russian ambitions. The achievement arrives at a moment when access to space has transformed from a symbol of national prestige into something closer to essential infrastructure — as consequential, in its way, as the shipping lanes and communication cables that underpin modern civilization. Europe, long a passenger in this story, is now attempting to write its own chapter.