NASA in the process of retiring International Space Station in favor of private space stations

[left-of-center2012]

NASA is making plans to support a new generation of space stations to take over for the International Space Station (ISS) when it retires. The space agency is considering having ISS partners develop new commercial space stations for future low Earth orbit missions (LEO), according to Elizabeth Howell with Space.com.

Phil McAlister, director of commercial spaceflight development at NASA headquarters, described why it's necessary to think beyond the ISS. "ISS is an amazing system, but unfortunately it won't last forever; it could experience an unrecoverable anomaly at any time," McAlister said. "Pretty much any space initiative can take a while, and longer than you might hope, so we really do feel like the time to get started is now, when the ISS is still in good health and providing good capability across the board," he said.

According to Howell, the ISS could retire as early as 2024 or possibly in 2028.

https://www.chron.com/news/space/article/NASA-supports-new-space-stations-16061387.php

[dalton99a]

1. With private luxury suites for VIPs

The cuisine will be gourmet

[Azathoth]

2. Weyland-Yutani will be first in line

The US space program died with the Cold War, we've just spent 30 years trying to pretend otherwise.

Boomers, gen-Xers and older millennials are the last generations who will think of space and space travel as something other than a niche commerical industry.

[sciencescience]

3. I wonder what Russia thinks. They control half of the ISS.

I wonder if they will keep maintaining it if we don't maintain our half.

[Caliman73]

4. They don't have the money to maintain their half either.

If the US pulls out, they won't have the funds as a government, to maintain the ISS. Plus, I am sure that they would like to privatize space too. The oligarchs and Putin like any opportunity to corner the market on a potential profit making enterprise.