NASA Announces $1 Billion Plan to Crash International Space Station into Pacific Ocean by 2031
NASA has unveiled its plan to retire the International Space Station (ISS) by crashing it back to Earth. The space agency cited accumulated stresses on the structure as the reason for decommissioning the orbiting laboratory, with the retirement plan set for 2031. The first stages of the plan are scheduled to begin in 2026.
To carry out the plan, NASA is seeking proposals from companies to design a “space-tug”—a craft capable of pulling the ISS from its orbit and directing it towards Earth. This space tug, known as a US Deorbit Vehicle (USDV), will gradually nudge the ISS from its current position 175 miles above the Earth’s surface to around 75 miles, initiating its final descent into the Pacific Ocean.
The proposal submission deadline for companies is November 17, and the retirement plan will commence in 2026 as NASA allows the craft to naturally decay in orbit. This process will take several years, during which the atmospheric drag will reduce the orbit to approximately 200 miles above the Earth’s surface. In 2030, the ISS crew will make the final descent to Earth while salvaging any crucial equipment.
As the ISS moves closer to Earth, reaching a point of no return at 175 miles above the surface, the $1 billion space tug will intervene and give it the final push from orbit. The station will then re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere, starting at an altitude between 75 and 50 miles. The external modules will burn up and vaporize, leaving a few surviving fragments that will be targeted to fall into Point Nemo, an area of the Pacific Ocean known as a spacecraft graveyard.
NASA has stated that the decommissioning plan ensures a responsible, controlled, and targeted deorbit into a remote ocean area. The fragments that survive re-entry are expected to have minimal environmental impacts in the designated area.
The ISS, which has been in operation since November 2000, has exceeded its originally planned 15-year lifespan and is showing signs of wear and tear. The safe deorbit of the station is the shared responsibility of NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and Roscosmos, the Russian equivalent.
While bidding farewell to the ISS, NASA is already looking toward the future. The agency has launched a transition plan, urging private companies to develop a replacement station to maintain access to the benefits of space research. Multiple companies, including Axiom Space, Blue Origin (owned by Jeff Bezos), and Northrop Grumman, have expressed interest in operating a commercial space station.
“The International Space Station is entering its third and most productive decade as a groundbreaking scientific platform in microgravity,” said Robyn Gatens, director of the International Space Station at NASA Headquarters. “This third decade is building on our successful global partnership to verify exploration and human research technologies, continue to return medical and environmental benefits to humanity, and lay the groundwork for a commercial future in low-Earth orbit.”
NASA’s plan to crash the ISS and develop a successor highlights the agency’s commitment to advancing space exploration and research.