NASA Awards SpaceX $843 Million ISS Deorbit Vehicle Contract for 2030 Point Nemo Splashdown
Updated
Updated · spacedaily.com · May 27
NASA Awards SpaceX $843 Million ISS Deorbit Vehicle Contract for 2030 Point Nemo Splashdown
4 articles · Updated · spacedaily.com · May 27
$843 million will fund SpaceX to build NASA’s United States Deorbit Vehicle, designed to steer the 420-ton International Space Station into the South Pacific near Point Nemo around 2030.
NASA chose a controlled reentry because large station components could survive breakup; an uncontrolled descent would scatter debris along an unpredictable path and risk people on land.
The vehicle will be based on SpaceX’s Dragon but heavily modified with more propellant and power, and NASA — not SpaceX — will own and operate it after the final crew departs.
Point Nemo, about 2,688 kilometers from the nearest land, has served as a Spacecraft Cemetery since 1971, with more than 260 controlled disposals recorded there through 2016.
The timeline is still fluid: Congress has pushed to extend ISS operations beyond 2030, Russia is committed only through 2028, and researchers still question the long-term seabed impact of repeated dumpings.
Is Point Nemo a safe 'cemetery,' or is the 420-tonne ISS creating a toxic deep-sea scrapyard?
As the ISS ages and partners diverge, could its planned Pacific splashdown become an uncontrolled disaster?
NASA’s $843 Million Plan to Deorbit the ISS: Technical, Strategic, and Global Implications for Low Earth Orbit After 2030
Overview
NASA has awarded SpaceX a major contract to develop the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle (USDV), a spacecraft designed to safely guide the International Space Station (ISS) out of orbit after its planned retirement around 2030. This decision reflects the shared responsibility among the five international space agencies that have operated the ISS since 1998. The USDV will enable a controlled deorbit, minimizing risks to people and property on Earth. NASA’s approach highlights the importance of international collaboration and careful planning to ensure the safe and responsible conclusion of the ISS’s historic mission.