NASA proposes new strategy for commercial space stations

WASHINGTON — NASA, concerned about slow development of commercial markets, is considering revamping its strategy for supporting the creation of commercial space stations to succeed the International Space Station.

At its March 24 "Ignition" event where NASA outlined sweeping changes to its exploration strategy, including redirecting work on the Gateway towards a lunar base and flying a nuclear propulsion demonstration mission to Mars as soon as 2028, the agency said it is weighing an alternative approach to help establish commercial ISS successors.

"Many years ago, when we started this program, the data we had was that we're 10 years away from a mature market," she said. "As we've watched over time, these independent market research surveys continue to tell us it's about that far out.