NASA has signed an $843 million contract with space shuttle and rocket manufacturer SpaceX to develop a vehicle that will safely land the International Space Station on Earth.
NASA announced on social media platform X that it has chosen to work with SpaceX to de-orbit the ISS. It was reported that an agreement worth 843 million dollars (approximately 28 billion liras) was signed between NASA and SpaceX to design the spacecraft that will take the ISS out of orbit after its mission expires in 2030.
NASA decided to drop the space station into the ocean with the vehicle to be designed so as not to pose a risk to populated areas of the world.
Stating that although most of the ISS can be repaired in orbit, some of its parts have a limited lifespan due to wear and tear, NASA will prevent space junk about 110 meters wide from circulating in orbit with this vehicle to be designed.
International Space Station
The construction of the space station was approved in 1984, first by then US President Ronald Reagan and then by the US Congress with its budget. Designed between 1984 and 1993, different elements of the station began to be built by the US, Canada, Japan and European countries in the late 1980s.
Like a Lego set, each piece of the ISS was built separately and assembled in space by complex robotic systems and people in spacesuits.
Russia was invited to the station, which was redesigned in 1993. The first parts of the space station, which continues to be worked on with the international partnership of 5 space agencies from 15 countries, started to be built in 1998. During this period, reusable spacecraft were also developed by the USA. The main construction of the station was basically completed between 1998 and 2011.
Considered a “joint program” of Europe, the United States, Russia, Canada and Japan, the ISS was created with contributions from the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), the European Space Agency (ESA), the Japan Space Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), in addition to NASA.
The International Space Station Program brings together international flight crews, multiple launch vehicles, globally distributed launch and flight operations, training, engineering and development facilities, communications networks and international scientific research communities.
