NASA has already revealed that the International Space Station (ISS) will be "retired" by the end of the decade and is now considering its options.
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According to CNBC, NASA is reaching out to several private companies to evaluate proposals to build new space stations that would be put into orbit, which would help the agency save more than $1 billion annually. Phil McAlister, NASA’s director of commercial spaceflight, confirmed that the agency “has already received about a dozen proposals” from different companies interested in working with NASA on this project. McAlister commented that NASA is making progress in developing commercial space destinations where people can work, play and live.
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Earlier this year, NASA unveiled the Commercial LEO Destinations project to kick off the development of private space stations. With the International Space Station in orbit for 22 years and costing NASA $4 billion a year to maintain, the agency is looking at different ways to reduce costs. The space agency hopes to have contracts with some companies by the end of the year. This isn't the first time NASA has sought partnerships with other agencies to achieve its space goals.
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As the International Space Station project nears its end, it makes sense for NASA to be thinking about how to move forward.
The space station has been in orbit since November 1998 and has provided NASA with a lot. Earlier this month, one of the astronauts on the station took a stunning photo from the ISS's observatory dome. The photo shows Earth with city lights battling with distant starlight.
Source: hypebeast.com
