Russia and the USA are discussing extending the operation of the ISS after 2028. This was stated by the Deputy Head of Roscosmos, Sergei Krikalev.
The station currently has two "deadlines": Russia plans to operate until 2028, and the American segment has already been certified until 2030. Therefore, the parties are looking for a compromise so as not to abruptly "turn off" the largest space project and leave time for the transition to new stations.
The ISS is not just an aging structure in orbit, but still the main space hub of the planet. The station flies at an altitude of about 400 km, orbits the Earth every hour and a half, and has been continuously inhabited for more than 20 years. During this time, it has become a huge laboratory where everything is tested - from the effect of weightlessness on humans to new technologies and materials.
Now they may find a new role for it. According to Krikalev, the Americans view the ISS as an "assembly point" for future stations: individual modules will be assembled in orbit, and then detached and operate independently.
Russia is simultaneously preparing its own orbital station - the launch of the project is scheduled for 2028. It should replace the ISS and become a base for longer-range missions.
As a result, the ISS may get a few more years of life - not as the end of an era, but as an intermediate stage before a new space infrastructure.
