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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado – NASA hopes commercial space stations will orbit Earth once the International Space Station finally retires, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, at the 36th Space Symposium.
The space station, which was completed in 2011, could retire as early as 2024. However, today Nelson revealed that he expects the orbiting lab to last until 2030 and that NASA is hoping for. that it will be replaced by commercial laboratories in orbit.
“We plan to expand the space station as a government project until 2030. And we hope it will be followed by commercial stations,” Nelson said during a panel of “agency heads” alongside other space leaders around the world.
Related: The International Space Station cannot last forever. This is how he will eventually die by fire.
Now, while NASA hopes commercial space stations take over as the International Space Station nears the end of its mandate, China has already started building its own space station. And, since NASA is prohibited from engaging in bilateral activities with China, this move by China is more competitive than collaborative.
“Unfortunately, I believe we are in a space race with China,” Nelson said during the panel. “I speak on behalf of the United States, for China to be a partner. I would like China to do with us as a military adversary, like Russia has done… I would like to try to do it. But China is very secretive, and part of the civilian space program is that you have to be transparent. ”
Nelson pointed to Russia’s long history as a collaborator alongside NASA in space, despite persistent political divisions on Earth. While there have been numerous issues and instances of tension between nations in space, most recently with Russia’s new Nauka module, the space station did an about-face after accidentally firing its thrusters after the mooring.
The situation with Nauka has raised questions about the state of NASA’s current relationship and status with the Russian space agency Roscosmos. This situation is further complicated by the fact that Russia and China are collaborating together on a lunar base.
However, Nelson is confident in NASA’s partnership with Russia.
The pair have been “enemies, even in the midst of the Cold War, who can come together and find a common denominator in civilian space,” Nelson said.
Email Chelsea Gohd at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @chelsea_gohd. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
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