NASA to Retire International Space Station by 2031, Crash It Into Pacific Ocean

“All good things must come to an end,” is an adage especially true within the halls of NASA HQ this week. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration just announced that it intends to keep the International Space Station in service through the end of 2030. After that, the spacecraft will be decommissioned and crashed into the Pacific Ocean.

“The International Space Station is entering its third and most productive decade as a groundbreaking scientific platform in microgravity,” Robyn Gatens, director of the International Space Station at NASA Headquarters, said in a press release. “This third decade is one of results, building on our successful global partnership to verify exploration and human research technologies to support deep space exploration, continue to return medical and environmental benefits to humanity, and lay the groundwork for a commercial future in low-Earth orbit. We look forward to maximizing these returns from the space station through 2030 while planning for transition to commercial space destinations that will follow.”

First launched in 2000, the space station has housed over 200 astronauts from 19 different countries, ensuring a constant human presence in space for the past two decades. Once brought out of service, the ISS will fall to Earth and crashland in an area called the South Pacific Oceanic Uninhabited Area.

According to NASA, the ISS has never been busier as it plays host to hundreds of experiments. In place of the Space Station will be three new commercial modules being developed by three companies within the United States—Blue Origin, Nanoracks, and Northrop Grumman.

“The private sector is technically and financially capable of developing and operating commercial low-Earth orbit destinations, with NASA’s assistance. We look forward to sharing our lessons learned and operations experience with the private sector to help them develop safe, reliable, and cost-effective destinations in space,” added Phil McAlister, director of commercial space at NASA Headquarters. “The report we have delivered to Congress describes, in detail, our comprehensive plan for ensuring a smooth transition to commercial destinations after retirement of the International Space Station in 2030.”

The three replacement modules are on track to be completed in the “late 2020s” to allow for at least some time to ensure they “meet the capabilities of the United States and its partners.”