Earlier this week, NASA announced its revised plans for the International Space Station’s final years, including when and how it will decommission one of the greatest historic achievements in human exploration — they’re gonna yeet it into the Pacific Ocean sometime in 2031, basically.
It’ll be an emotional moment to see the bits of the ISS that don’t burn up upon re-entry plunge into the waters around Point Nemo — the farthest area of ocean from humans — not merely because it signals the end of monumental era in space exploration and science, but also because of what we now know will come afterwards. Although the writing’s been on the rocket for a while now, it doesn’t make it any easier to accept: The potential future of humanity amidst the stars lies not with publicly funded, governmental space programs, but with guys who like to dub themselves “The Technoking” and alter historic landmarks to make way for their superyachts.
