“There is very little incremental utility. Let’s go to Mars.”…

Summary

Elon Musk has called for the International Space Station (ISS) to be deorbited “as soon as possible,” suggesting a two-year timeline instead of NASA’s planned 2030 retirement.

His statement has sparked political backlash, particularly from Sen. Ted Cruz, who supports the ISS. NASA and international partners prefer keeping the ISS operational.

Musk’s push appears tied to redirecting NASA funding toward Mars exploration, potentially challenging plans for private space stations.

This move could further centralize US space efforts around SpaceX, impacting commercial space competition.

  • talEnglish
    111·
    2 days ago

    I mean, it’s not just the US that provides funding for that or contributed components. Russia, various European countries, Japan and Canada, I believe, all have some level of funding.

    kagis

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Space_Station_programme

    The ISS has been described as the most expensive single item ever constructed.[93] As of 2010, the total cost was US$150 billion. This includes NASA’s budget of $58.7 billion ($89.73 billion in 2021 dollars) for the station from 1985 to 2015, Russia’s $12 billion, Europe’s $5 billion, Japan’s $5 billion, Canada’s $2 billion, and the cost of 36 shuttle flights to build the station, estimated at $1.4 billion each, or $50.4 billion in total.

    Now, granted, Russia had already been talking about killing their support, maybe pulling their modules off to start a new space station for some time, so they’re probably more than fine with that.