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The ISS was instructed to continue through 2028 as part of an international collaboration in space. However, a report from Russian manufacturer RSC Energia, the main developer and contractor of the Russian manned spaceflight program, revealed that the orbiting laboratory may not last that long.
According to the flight director of the Russian segment of the ISS, Vladimir Alekseevich Soloviev, several elements on the ISS have been irreparably damaged and the space station could be forced into early retirement.
He said Russia expects an “avalanche of failures” on the ISS.
Mr. Soloviev said the damage will prove too expensive and that Russia may have to set up its own orbiting laboratory.
Mr. Soloviev told the Russian Academy of Sciences: “Until 2025, Russia has an obligation to participate in the ISS program.
“There are already a number of elements that have been seriously damaged and are out of order.
“Many of them are not replaceable. After 2025, we expect a failure similar to an avalanche of numerous elements aboard the ISS.”
However, Dmitry Rogozin, who heads the Russian space agency Roscosmos, said it may be too early to retire.
Mr. Rogozin said that although some modules are damaged beyond repair, they could be replaced.
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He said on Twitter: “I think it’s too early to cancel the station.
“I see the great potential of the ISS for the development of space tourism and the participation of private space companies.”
NASA already has its plans in place after the ISS.
The project has been dubbed the Deep Space Gateway and will likely act as a replacement for the ISS, but will instead orbit the Moon.
While the ISS is, as the name suggests, an international collaboration, with the likes of the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada and Europe having astronauts on it, the Gateway will be more NASA-centric.
As a result, the Russian space agency Roscosmos has distanced itself from the project, saying a more comprehensive approach is needed.
Russia is unlikely to want to be led by the United States in its space program, so it will attempt to initiate and launch its own missions or participate with other global partners.
On October 12, Rogozin told the International Astronautics Congress: “In our view, the Moon Relay in its current form is too centered on the United States, so to speak.
“Russia is likely to refrain from participating on a large scale.”
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