The transition to a private space station won't happen soon
NASA must continue to rely on international cooperation to keep the International Space Station (ISS) afloat through 2030 and beyond, despite plans to replace the laboratory with a private commercial space station. Launched in 1998, the ISS is now in its third decade of operation. The aging space lab is showing signs of wear and tear – many cracks and leaks have caused a loss of air pressure. His future also looked uncertain earlier this year when Dmitry Rogozin, the former head of Russia’s space agency Roscosmos, threatened to withdraw aid if the US and European Union did not lift sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine. NASA still likes the idea of a permanent space station, but not as a completely government-operated affair. “Going forward, NASA’s vision for low-Earth orbit is a sustainable commercial space market in which NASA is one of many customers,” the space agency said in the ISS Benefit to Humanity report. [PDF]. “Development of a soun