Former Space Agency Leaders Horrified by Plan to Destroy Space Station

Former leaders of space agencies have expressed strong opposition to NASA's plan to destroy the International Space Station (ISS) by 2030. NASA recently awarded SpaceX a nearly $1 billion contract to develop a vehicle intended to deorbit the ISS, which has been a symbol of international cooperation in space for three decades. Jean-Jacques Dordain, former director general of the European Space Agency, and former NASA administrator Michael Griffin argue that instead of destruction, the ISS should be preserved and its orbit raised to a stable altitude. They suggest that the SpaceX deorbit vehicle could be repurposed to boost the ISS from its current 400-kilometer altitude to an 800-kilometer orbit, which would extend its operational life for decades and allow future generations to decide its fate. In an open letter, they emphasized the importance of conducting further studies before making a final decision, advocating for a solution that avoids creating long-lived space debris. Dordain and Griffin believe that the current plan to destroy the ISS is shortsighted and that preserving the station would provide valuable opportunities for future scientific research. They urge decision-makers to consider alternatives that would benefit future generations rather than hastily dismantling a significant achievement in human space exploration.