The American government was never meant to keep the International Space Station in operation forever. Now, it seems the Trump administration has plans to turn it into a real estate property, run by the private industry.
Images courtesy: NASA
As previously decided, the US will stop funding the ISS in 2025. However, the plan was never to abandon it, but to instead repurpose it for other purposes. Apparently, one idea from the White House is to turn it over to the private sector, according to NASA documents accessed by The Washington Post.
¡°The decision to end direct federal support for the ISS in 2025 does not imply that the platform itself will be deorbited at that time ¡ª it is possible that industry could continue to operate certain elements or capabilities of the ISS as part of a future commercial platform,¡± the document states. ¡°NASA will expand international and commercial partnerships over the next seven years in order to ensure continued human access to and presence in low Earth orbit.¡±
In a budget request released today, the administration requested $150 million for the 2019 fiscal year (as well as more in the future) to develop commercial entities that will ensure the ISS remain operational. Of course, that¡¯s not likely to go down well with all members of congress, considering the US has spent close to $100 billion so far to build and operate the space station
NASA is still currently studying whether it¡¯s possible to extend the lifespan of the station to 2028 or later, and it¡¯s possible a public-private partnership would be acceptable to the US. But then again, how many organisations would be capable of, and would want to, take over the ISS? After all, it¡¯s built for scientific experimentation and space exploration, not to mention a few other countries have a stake in it as well.
But even this discussion is a clear indicator of how the space travel industry in the US has changed, ever since NASA first began outsourcing cargo resupply missions to the ISS to companies like SpaceX and Boeing.
And who knows? Maybe one day the ISS will turn into a privately-operated space hotel, or a scientific museum we can visit.