NASA Told to Overhaul Its Plans to Replace the International Space Station

For nearly 30 years, the International Space Station has played orbital home for astronauts from all over the world, but its time is running out. Slated to retire in 2030, NASA is aiming to replace it with a privately-run station that can host its astronauts in space when needed. And now under pressure to get a new station up and running fast and within a slashed budget, NASA’s current head—U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy—is completely overhauling the agency’s plans to replace the ISS.

In a memo signed August 4, Duffy directs NASA to revise its Commercial Low Earth Orbit Destination program, which is designed to facilitate the development of commercial stations to replace the ISS. Under the new directive, NASA would lower the bar for the minimum capabilities for new space stations, which could hamper the agency’s effort to maintain a continuous human presence in low-Earth orbit.

NASA launched the CLD acquisition program in 2021 with a two-phase roadmap: The first phase was aimed to support the design and development of a commercial space station, and the second phase was supposed to certify select space stations for the agency to use.

NASA awarded first-phase agreements, known as Space Act Agreements, to various companies including Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman to develop their designs. The phase two, which was slated to begin in September this year, was supposed to see NASA to award fixed-price contracts for certification and services to select stations.

Duffy’s memo, however, reportedly states that NASA should continue issuing Space Act Agreements in the second phase instead of fixed-price contracts, as reported by Space News. The change is meant to accommodate NASA’s budget for 2026, which could create a $4 billion funding shortfall compared to this year’s budget.

Another major change is the revision to minimum capability requirements for an ISS replacement. NASA’s original vision was to develop a fully commercial, end-to-end service by 2031 that could support continuous missions involving two NASA astronauts for six months at a time, a similar type of crew rotation to the one currently in place on the ISS.

“The end capability (previously called Full Operational Capability) originally required by NASA will no longer be binding,” the directive states, according to Space News: The new requirements call instead for a minimum capability of four-person crews staying on board a private space station for just a month.

The ISS’s retirement was always going to be the end of an era for NASA, but the agency had sought to maintain its ongoing presence in orbit, even if on commercial stations. The directive erases that original vision, but it could also give the agency a better chance at success with its commercial partnerships given the uncertainty around its budget.

“How was NASA’s previous strategy for commercial stations going to work when they lost close to a third of their budget?” Phil McAlister, previously the director of NASA’s Commercial Space Division, said in an interview with Ars Technica. “They had no chance. This gives them a chance.”