NASA announces new plans for space station near the moon
NASA is planning a new space station near the moon, 250,000 miles further out in space than the International Space Station. Taxpayer funding for the ISS would end in 2025, with private industry expected to take over.
The new moon-orbiting space station is envisioned to be a busy place by 2030. It's a huge new project. It will take a series of major launches from the Space Coast to make it happen, leading to a lot of local activity and jobs.
NASA's giant SLS rocket test-launches for the first time in 2020. That adds another year of delay to its original 2017 date. The first rocket to launch part of the moon station is scheduled for 2022. NASA's acting administrator hinted Monday that the big new SpaceX Falcon Heavy, test-launched last week, may do some of the heavy lifting to get the new moon station into space.
NASA's new budget, at $20 billion, is around $400 million higher than this year's. The moon station and everything else the budget contains are proposals likely to be changed a lot by Congress.