Camilla Jessen
After a quarter century circling Earth, the International Space Station is entering its final years.
After more than two decades circling Earth, the International Space Station is approaching the end of its run.
Its planned retirement in 2030 will close a chapter defined by scientific breakthroughs and unprecedented international cooperation, while opening the door to a new generation of commercial research outposts in orbit.
End of an icon
Since the first crew arrived in 2000, the ISS has maintained an unbroken human presence in space, hosting astronauts around the clock and serving as a shared platform for the United States, Europe, Canada, Japan and Russia.
The station became the world’s largest orbital laboratory after its first module launched in 1998, offering researchers long-term access to microgravity, extreme environmental conditions and views of both deep space and Earth.
For many who helped build and operate the ISS, its approaching farewell is deeply personal. One aerospace engineer with more than 30 years in the field — including 17 at NASA — wrote that watching the station reach retirement “will be difficult… after so many years of faithful service.”
That sentiment reflects the station’s scientific impact.
More than 4,000 experiments have been conducted on board, producing over 4,400 peer-reviewed papers across fields ranging from biotechnology and materials science to astrophysics and combustion research.
Scientific legacy
Studies performed in orbit have advanced knowledge of thunderstorms, enabled improved crystallization techniques for anti-cancer drugs, demonstrated methods for growing artificial retinas, and shown that DNA can be sequenced in microgravity.
Work on ultra-pure optical fibers and fluid behavior has also helped scientists understand physical and biological processes impossible to replicate on Earth.
Yet its end does not mean the end of NASA’s presence in low Earth orbit. In December 2021, the agency awarded three agreements to help private companies build and operate commercial space stations.
The model follows successful partnerships that already send cargo and crews to the ISS using SpaceX’s Dragon and Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
NASA has committed more than 400 million dollars to speed development, aiming to have new stations operating before the ISS makes its controlled descent into the Pacific.
A draft solicitation released in September 2025 outlined the next step: selecting firms to complete critical design reviews and demonstrate platforms capable of hosting four people for at least 30 days. The goal is to certify these stations so NASA can buy research time as a customer rather than own the infrastructure outright.
China’s steady ascent
Meanwhile, China continues steady operations on its Tiangong station, which has been occupied for about four years and is positioned to become the longest-inhabited outpost once the ISS retires.
Source: Videnskab.dk
This article is made and published by Camilla Jessen, who may have used AI in the preparation
