NASA Is Shopping for Private Stations to Replace the ISS

NASA's program for ISS successors is reported at up to $34 billion with awards due in April, and the first private station is built and in testing for an early-2027 launch.

TL;DR

The International Space Station will not be replaced by another government station. NASA is now shopping for private ones, in a program reported at up to $34 billion, and plans to pick two or more companies next April. The first private station, Vast's Haven-1, is already built and in testing for an early-2027 launch. That means low Earth orbit is turning into a place where companies own the real estate and NASA rents rooms. The open questions are how fast the first crews can actually move in, whether paying customers show up, and what living in space for long stretches does to the human body.

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