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After 25 years in orbit, the International Space Station has a scheduled end date: in 2030, it will be guided by NASA to Point Nemo, the remote "spacecraft graveyard" in the Pacific Ocean.
Last Sunday (2), the International Space Station (ISS) completed 25 years of continuous human occupation. This is a historic achievement because it represents the longest human presence outside Earth. However, the end of this journey already has a date and location defined: Point Nemo, a remote area of the Pacific Ocean known as the "spacecraft graveyard".
NASA has confirmed that in 2030, a SpaceX Dragon capsule will perform a controlled reentry of the ISS into the atmosphere. Fragments of the structure will fall into the ocean, ending three decades of operation in orbit.
The largest scientific collaboration ever undertaken in space.
Built between 1998 and 2011, the ISS is considered one of humanity's greatest technological achievements.
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It was developed by five space agencies — the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada, and Europe — and became the largest scientific laboratory ever placed in orbit.
Since its opening, 290 people from 26 countries have lived and worked at the site. They have conducted experiments in various fields, such as physics, medicine, and biology.
This global cooperation has enabled significant progress because it has brought together technical knowledge, resources, and common goals around space research.
Each country's participation is proportional to its financial and technological contribution. The United States leads in the number of missions, with 170 astronauts sent.
Russia, on the other hand, sent 64. This division illustrates the collaborative nature that has characterized the station's entire existence.
What will the end of the ISS be like?
To safely conclude the mission, NASA plans to use a modified version of the Dragon capsule, manufactured by SpaceX.
The plan is to guide the station into a controlled reentry, ensuring that most of the structure is consumed by atmospheric heat before reaching the ocean.
The destination point, Point Nemo, is approximately 2.700 kilometers from the nearest inhabited land.
This distance makes the region ideal for the fall of space debris, because it practically eliminates any risk to people or vessels.
For this reason, the place has earned the nickname "spacecraft graveyard." Hundreds of satellites, probes, and old stations that have completed their missions rest there. The ISS will therefore be the largest object ever "buried" in this remote location.
The reentry process and the symbolism of the closing of the Space Station.
During its planned reentry in 2030, the ISS is expected to gradually disintegrate. First, solar panels and radiators will detach.
Next, the main modules break apart into smaller pieces. Most of these fragments will burn up completely, but denser parts may survive until they reach the ocean.
Previous cases show that this type of operation requires precision. In 2001, Russia directed the Mir space station to the same point in the Pacific.
Back in 1979, part of the United States' Skylab space station ended up falling in Australia, which earned NASA a symbolic fine of US$400.
Weighing 460 tons and with dimensions equivalent to a football field, the International Space Station will end its journey as the largest human-made object to re-enter Earth in a controlled manner — a farewell that symbolizes the end of an era and the beginning of a new phase in the commercial exploration of space.
With information from Olhar Digital.
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