NASA has selected SpaceX to develop a vehicle that will bring the International Space Station to a fiery end when the time comes.
The space agency first asked U.S. aerospace companies for proposals in March 2023 and then again in September of that year. The request was for a “space tug” vehicle that could help deorbit the U.S. sections of the International Space Station (ISS) safely.
On Wednesday (June 26), the agency issued a statement announcing that SpaceX has been selected to develop and deliver the “U.S. Deorbit Vehicle” as it’s known. The contract is worth up to $843 million; that total does not include any launch costs, however, and is for the vehicle development only. The vehicle will be responsible for disposing of the space station “in a controlled manner after the end of its operational life in 2030,” the statement adds.
If they were going for uncontrolled crashes they would have selected Boeing
They got a Boeing stuck to it right now. The mission may start earlier than planned…
Technically it’s just a bunch of metal and other stuff but the thought of deorbiting the ISS makes me sad.
I wish they could send it into space so it can orbit the sun forever instead of burning up.
Good point, if they’re sending a rocket up there anyway, why not just push it away from earth rather than towards it? Is it because it’s in LEO and there’s a ton of other satellites farther out?
Question: why deorbit vs push out of orbit away from earth?
Will they save all those Thinkpads?
Cause musk knows how build things that crash and burn
