NASA and Elon Musk's company outlined the plan to burn the space station up on reentry and plunge what's left into the ocean, ideally at the beginning of 2031 when it hits the 32-year mark.
The space agency rejected other options, like taking the station apart and bringing everything home or handing the keys to someone else.
NASA gave SpaceX a $843 million contract to bring down the station - the biggest structure ever built off the planet.
Here's a rundown on the work and challenges ahead:
WHY GET RID OF THE SPACE STATION?
The space station is already is showing signs of age. Russia and the U.S. launched the first pieces in late 1998, and astronauts moved in two years later. Europe and Japan added their own segments, and Canada provided robotic arms. By the time NASA’s shuttles retired in 2011, the station had grown to the size of a football field, with a mass of nearly 1 million pounds (430,000 kilograms). NASA figures the station will last until at least 2030. The goal is for private companies to launch their own space stations by then, with NASA serving as one of many customers. That strategy — already in place for station cargo and crew deliveries — will free NASA up to focus on moon and Mars travel. NASA could decide to extend the station’s life, too, if no commercial outposts are up there yet. The aim is to have an overlap so scientific research is not interrupted.
WHY NOT BRING IT BACK TO EARTH?
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der July 26, 2024-Ausgabe von AppleMagazine.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der July 26, 2024-Ausgabe von AppleMagazine.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
CHINA'S CATL FORMS JOINT VENTURE WITH STELLANTIS TO BUILD ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY FACTORY IN SPAIN
Chinese electric battery company CATL and automaker Stellantis will build a major battery factory in northern Spain, the partners announced this week.
TIKTOK ASKS FEDERAL APPEALS COURT TO BAR ENFORCEMENT OF POTENTIAL BAN UNTIL SUPREME COURT REVIEW
TikTok asked a federal appeals court on Monday to bar the Biden administration from enforcing a law that could lead to a ban on the popular platform until the Supreme Court reviews its challenge to the statute.
META SHAREHOLDERS SEEK SANCTIONS FOR SANDBERG, ZIENTS FOR DELETING CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA EMAILS
2018 shareholder lawsuit that alleged Facebook officers and directors violated both the law and their fiduciary duties in failing for years to protect the privacy of user data.
BOEING LAYS OFF HUNDREDS IN WASHINGTON AND CALIFORNIA AS PART OF CUTS ANNOUNCED PREVIOUSLY
Boeing has laid off hundreds of additional employees in Washington state and California as part of planned cuts that will eventually reduce the company’s workforce by about 17,000.
NASA PUSHES BACK ASTRONAUT FLIGHTS TO THE MOON AGAIN
NASA announced more delays in sending astronauts back to the moon more than 50 years after Apollo.
BILLIONAIRE WHO PERFORMED THE FIRST PRIVATE SPACEWALK IS TRUMP'S PICK TO LEAD NASA
A tech billionaire who bought a series of spaceflights from Elon Musk’s SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk was nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to lead NASA.
FROM 'LOVE ACTUALLY' TO 'BLACK DOVES' WITH BEN WHISHAW, KEIRA KNIGHTLEY HAS YOUR CHRISTMAS COVERED
Keira Knightley starred in one of the most popular Christmas films of the 21st century, the 2003 romantic comedy “Love Actually.”
FORTNITE PLAYERS 'TRICKED' INTO UNWANTED PURCHASES ARE STARTING TO GET REFUNDS. HERE'S HOW TO APPLY
U.S. consumers who were “tricked” into purchases they didn’t want from Fortnite maker Epic Games are now starting to receive refund checks, the Federal Trade Commission said this week.
CHINA'S BAN ON KEY HIGH-TECH MATERIALS COULD HAVE BROAD IMPACT ON INDUSTRIES ECONOMY
China has banned exports of key materials used to make a wide range of products, including smartphones, electric vehicles, radar systems and CT scanners, swiping back at Washington after it expanded export controls to include dozens of Chinese companies that make equipment used to produce advanced computer chips.
'MOANA 2' CRUISES TO ANOTHER RECORD WEEKEND AND $600 MILLION GLOBALLY
The Walt Disney Co.’s animated film “Moana 2” remained at the top of the box office in its second weekend in theaters as it brought in another record haul.
