Produced by: Mohsin Shaikh
Elon Musk has called for the early deorbiting of the ISS by 2027, three years ahead of NASA’s planned 2030 retirement.
Musk claims the ISS has "fulfilled its mission" and is now a waste of resources that should be redirected toward Mars exploration.
After 25 years in orbit, the ISS faces rising maintenance costs, structural fatigue, and increased threats from space debris.
If the ISS is deorbited early, China’s Tiangong station would be the only permanent human outpost in orbit—at least temporarily.
With Musk’s influence over Donald Trump, a future administration could fast-track the ISS’s retirement, leaving allies scrambling.
An early shutdown would disrupt missions from NASA, ESA, JAXA, and Canada, leaving astronauts and projects in limbo.
Musk’s ISS demand follows a heated public fight with former ISS commander Andreas Mogensen over astronaut safety.
NASA plans to transition to private space stations, but these won’t be ready by 2027—leaving a dangerous gap in human spaceflight.
For Musk, low Earth orbit is a distraction—he wants to ditch the ISS and focus entirely on interplanetary missions.