(NewsNation) — NASA has awarded a contract that would potentially be valued at $830 million to Elon Musk’s SpaceX company to develop a vehicle capable of deorbiting the International Space Station.
NASA announced on Wednesday that SpaceX had been awarded the contract to develop and deliver the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle that would have the ability to deorbit the space station at the end of its operational life in 2030.
Although SpaceX will develop the spacecraft, NASA will take ownership of the vehicle once it is completed and will operate it throughout the mission. Along with the space station, it is expected to destructively break up as part of its re-entry process, NASA said.
NASA officials said that selecting a U.S. Deorbit Vehicle for the space station will help ensure a safe and responsible transition in low Earth orbit at the end of the space station’s operations. The deorbit vehicle allows for the space station to return to the Earth’s atmosphere in a controlled manner and to “ensure avoidance of risk to populated areas,” NASA officials said.
“This decision also supports NASA’s plans for future commercial destinations and allows for the continued use of space near Earth,” Ken Bowersox, associate administrator for Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said in a news release. “The orbital laboratory remains a blueprint for science, exploration, and partnerships in space for the benefit of all.”
The International Space Station has been operated by five countries since 1998. Since then, the Canadian Space Agency, European Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, NASA, and the State Space Corporation Roscosmos have worked together to operate the space station.
The station was designed to be interdependent and relies on contributions from across the partnership to function, NASA said.
The United States, Japan, Canada, and the participating countries of ESA have committed to operating the station through 2030. Russia has committed to continued station operations through at least 2028. The safe deorbit of the International Space Station is the responsibility of all five space agencies, NASA said.
Crews living aboard the space station are the hands of thousands of researchers on the ground, having conducted more than 3,300 experiments in microgravity.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the contract from NewsNation.