After ISS – What?
The International Space Station can’t stay up there forever. Will privately run, commercial replacements be ready in time?, Washington Post
“Wary of a gap, Bridenstine has increasingly been sounding the alarm, urging Congress to fully fund its requests to build a commercial presence in Earth orbit that would include private stations. Last year, NASA requested $150 million as part of its plan, but Congress granted just a tenth of that. For the fiscal 2021 budget, NASA requested the same amount but will receive just $17 billion, sparking a new round of warnings: “ISS won’t last forever & incentivizing the private sector to begin follow-on capabilities are needed now,” said Lori Garver, who served as NASA deputy administrator in the Obama administration. “This concept isn’t hard, have we learned nothing in the last 10 years?”