The countdown has started for the ISS’s final mission
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NASA is handing Elon Musk’s SpaceX a massive $843 million contract to safely deorbit the International Space Station (ISS), marking the end of an era in space exploration.
Originally launched in 1998 as a groundbreaking collaboration between NASA (USA), Roscosmos (Russia), ESA (Europe), JAXA (Japan), and CSA (Canada), the ISS has been humanity’s home in orbit since 2000. Floating 400 km (250 miles) above Earth, it has served as a hub for scientific breakthroughs, technological advancements, and international cooperation.
NASA describes the ISS as “a convergence of science, technology, and human innovation,” and Ken Bowersox, NASA’s Associate Administrator for Space Operations, hails it as “a blueprint for science, exploration, and partnerships in space for the benefit of all.”
However, while the station remains structurally sound, aging systems are beginning to show their wear. Engineers caution that if left unchecked, the ISS could one day slip out of orbit uncontrollably—an outcome NASA is determined to prevent. Now, with SpaceX at the helm of its controlled descent, the ISS’s final mission is set to be just as historic as its first.
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To ensure a controlled descent, NASA has awarded SpaceX a lucrative $843 million contract to safely deorbit and destroy the International Space Station (ISS). Elon Musk’s company has been tasked with developing a powerful “space tug”—a specialized vehicle designed to guide the aging station into a precise crash zone in the Pacific Ocean.
This deorbit vehicle, an advanced adaptation of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule, will gradually lower the ISS’s altitude over several months. Then, about six months before its fiery re-entry, astronauts will evacuate, leaving the station unmanned for the first time in over 25 years.
As the ISS plunges through Earth’s atmosphere, scientists expect it to break apart destructively. The massive solar panels will be the first to disintegrate, while the heavier core modules will likely stay intact until they hit the ocean. To prevent any risk to human life, mission controllers have chosen Point Nemo—a desolate stretch of the Pacific, known as the “oceanic pole of inaccessibility”—as the station’s final resting place.
From its groundbreaking launch to its spectacular farewell, the ISS’s final journey will mark the end of an extraordinary chapter in human space exploration.
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While NASA has mapped out plans to keep the ISS operational until 2030, Elon Musk believes it’s time to call it quits even sooner.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has questioned the station’s relevance, pointing to its aging systems and diminishing returns. Taking to X, Musk declared: “It is time to begin preparations for deorbiting the Space_Station. It has served its purpose.” He doubled down on his vision for deep space exploration, adding: “There is very little incremental utility. Let’s go to Mars.”
Musk’s long-standing ambition to colonize Mars could gain momentum if ISS resources are redirected toward future space missions. Meanwhile, international support for the station remains split—most partner nations back the ISS until 2030, but Russia has signaled its exit by 2028.
Regardless of the timeline, one thing is certain: the countdown to the ISS’s final journey has officially begun.
