For those fortunate enough to gaze at the sky at the right moment, the International Space Station (ISS) can be seen streaking at an incredible speed of 17,000 miles per hour. Recently, on November 2, 2025, the ISS marked a significant milestone, celebrating 25 years of continuous human presence. However, as the landscape of space travel evolves, NASA is preparing for the ISS’s retirement, signaling a shift toward privately owned space stations.
The ISS recently garnered attention when two astronauts extended their stay for a staggering nine months, far exceeding their initial week-long mission. The station’s genesis dates back to the mid-1980s when President Ronald Reagan green-lighted the ambitious project. Constructed through a collaborative effort involving the U.S., Canada, Japan, Europe, and Russia, the ISS was likened by NASA to a “Lego set” built in orbit, and it remains the largest human-made structure in space.
On November 2, 2000, as the nation focused on the outcome of a pivotal presidential election, NASA’s Expedition 1 made history by bringing aboard the ISS the first permanent crew while construction was still underway.
Typically, around seven astronauts inhabit the ISS, engaged in hundreds of experiments simultaneously. This unique laboratory offers unparalleled opportunities for scientific research, allowing for long-duration studies that would be impossible on Earth. Nevertheless, as NASA charts a course for the future, it plans to deorbit the ISS by the end of 2030.
The process of decommissioning a massive structure like the 356-foot ISS presents numerous challenges. NASA considered various methods, including dismantling the station for reentry. In the end, the agency opted for a controlled descent, with a planned crash into a remote section of the ocean considered the safest option.
To facilitate a successful reentry, NASA has selected SpaceX to create a specialized deorbit vehicle that will guide the ISS’s descent path. While much of the structure is expected to disintegrate upon entering the atmosphere, the environmental repercussions of any remnants reaching Earth are projected to be minimal.
Upon the ISS’s decommissioning, NASA intends to redirect its focus towards exploring areas beyond low-Earth orbit, particularly the Moon and Mars. There’s a burgeoning interest in assessing the habitability of these celestial bodies, yet the ISS has significantly impacted our understanding of life on Earth, contributing to over 4,000 experiments throughout its operational history. Research conducted aboard the station has spanned a wide range of topics, including DNA sequencing, advancements in cancer therapies, and meteorological phenomena like thunderstorms.
With NASA stepping back from its direct management of low-Earth orbit exploration, the responsibility is increasingly transitioning to the private sector. Nevertheless, NASA isn’t severing all ties; in 2021, the agency forged agreements with companies such as Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, and Nanoracks LLC to develop new space station designs and other commercial destinations. The objective is to ensure that these projects lift off—literally and figuratively—before the ISS reaches the end of its operational life, thereby averting any interruptions in essential services.
As NASA embarks on this new phase, the shift towards commercial space stations represents an evolution in space exploration. The lessons learned from the ISS, both in engineering and scientific research, will undoubtedly influence future endeavors. The history of the ISS serves not only as a testament to international collaboration in space but also as a foundation for the upcoming era of private industry involvement in extraterrestrial exploration.
