NASA update after selecting Elon Musk's SpaceX for historic International Space Station deorbit mission
In a contract worth up to $843 million, SpaceX will build and operate a specialised "Deorbit Vehicle" (DV) for NASA.
- Jul 18, 2024,
- Updated Jul 18, 2024 12:08 PM IST
The International Space Station's days are numbered, and SpaceX has been tapped to orchestrate its controlled deorbit and fiery re-entry over the Pacific Ocean. The task: safely guide the massive, ageing structure back to Earth, preventing an uncontrolled descent that could scatter debris over populated areas.
In a contract worth up to $843 million, SpaceX will build and operate a specialised "Deorbit Vehicle" (DV) for NASA. This spacecraft, significantly larger and more powerful than SpaceX's existing Dragon cargo capsules, will dock with the ISS and use its array of thrusters to carefully nudge the station out of orbit around 2030.
"When we do make the decision to deorbit station, we'll launch the U.S. DV about one-and-a-half years before the final re-entry burn," explained Dana Weigel, NASA's ISS program manager at the Johnson Space Center.
The ISS, a testament to international collaboration, is a sprawling complex, stretching longer than a football field and weighing in at a hefty 925,000 pounds. Guiding this behemoth back to Earth is no simple feat.
"The deorbit vehicle will need six times the usable propellant and three to four times the power generation and storage of today's Dragon spacecraft," said Sarah Walker, a senior manager at SpaceX.
The DV will carry a staggering 35,000 pounds of propellant to power its 46 Draco rocket engines. Once docked to the ISS, it will gradually lower the station's altitude over several months, culminating in a final controlled descent into the remote South Pacific Ocean.
While atmospheric drag would eventually cause the ISS to fall back to Earth naturally, an uncontrolled re-entry poses significant risks. Debris could rain down over a vast swathe of the planet, endangering populated areas.
"We jointly agreed together to go have U.S. industry take a look at what we could do on our side for the deorbit," Weigel explained, highlighting the shift from the initial plan of relying on Russian Progress cargo ships for deorbit.
SpaceX beat out competitor Northrop Grumman for the contract, leveraging its experience with orbital manoeuvres and spacecraft design. The company is expected to leverage technologies from its Dragon spacecraft while incorporating new features to meet the demanding requirements of deorbiting the ISS.
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The International Space Station's days are numbered, and SpaceX has been tapped to orchestrate its controlled deorbit and fiery re-entry over the Pacific Ocean. The task: safely guide the massive, ageing structure back to Earth, preventing an uncontrolled descent that could scatter debris over populated areas.
In a contract worth up to $843 million, SpaceX will build and operate a specialised "Deorbit Vehicle" (DV) for NASA. This spacecraft, significantly larger and more powerful than SpaceX's existing Dragon cargo capsules, will dock with the ISS and use its array of thrusters to carefully nudge the station out of orbit around 2030.
"When we do make the decision to deorbit station, we'll launch the U.S. DV about one-and-a-half years before the final re-entry burn," explained Dana Weigel, NASA's ISS program manager at the Johnson Space Center.
The ISS, a testament to international collaboration, is a sprawling complex, stretching longer than a football field and weighing in at a hefty 925,000 pounds. Guiding this behemoth back to Earth is no simple feat.
"The deorbit vehicle will need six times the usable propellant and three to four times the power generation and storage of today's Dragon spacecraft," said Sarah Walker, a senior manager at SpaceX.
The DV will carry a staggering 35,000 pounds of propellant to power its 46 Draco rocket engines. Once docked to the ISS, it will gradually lower the station's altitude over several months, culminating in a final controlled descent into the remote South Pacific Ocean.
While atmospheric drag would eventually cause the ISS to fall back to Earth naturally, an uncontrolled re-entry poses significant risks. Debris could rain down over a vast swathe of the planet, endangering populated areas.
"We jointly agreed together to go have U.S. industry take a look at what we could do on our side for the deorbit," Weigel explained, highlighting the shift from the initial plan of relying on Russian Progress cargo ships for deorbit.
SpaceX beat out competitor Northrop Grumman for the contract, leveraging its experience with orbital manoeuvres and spacecraft design. The company is expected to leverage technologies from its Dragon spacecraft while incorporating new features to meet the demanding requirements of deorbiting the ISS.
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