The International Space Station is one of the greatest milestones in human history. And yes, I know that phrase is usually couched by limiting it to engineering, science, space exploration, etc., but the truth is that it actually transcends them and becomes something that all of humanity should be proud of, and that it should serve as an example of how far one can go when moving in the right direction.

With the launch of the Zaryá module in November 1998, the first step was taken to build an unprecedented collaborative project, and it was only two years later that it was put into operation for the first time. During all these years many remarkable moments have been created and although with problems, it is still in orbit today, 408 kilometers above the surface of the Earth and moving at a speed of 7.66 kilometers per second (27,600 kilometers per hour). ).

In recent months, we have learned more problems, generally related to external objectsfrom the attitude changes that had to be made to avoid a collision, to the accident suffered by Soyuz MS-22 that seriously endangered part of the crew by leaving them without a “lifeboat”. But not all problems are related to what is outside the International Space Station, the truth is that this November marks 25 years since the launch of the Zaryá module into orbit, and the installation is already starting to show its age.

There is still no definitive decommissioning date, but given that it will understandably be a rather complex operation, space agencies are already working to define how the International Space Station will live out its final hours. Obviously, the device cannot be allowed to continue in orbit once it is no longer operational, as the risks that an object of its size could cause to orbit unchecked are simply unimaginable.

So how can we read in space, NASA is already considering how to deorbit the International Space Station, with a plan suggesting 2030 as a hypothetical date. For this purpose, the project envisages the creation of a towboat at a cost of 180 million (the total cost of the operation is estimated to be around one billion dollars), which, after connecting to the station, would drive. creating decay into its orbit following a predefined trajectory. That way re-entry would already take care of the destruction of the part of the International Space Station that would fall into the ocean anyway, somewhere particularly far from any inhabited area.