China Becomes The Only Country With Space Station After The ISS Retires In 2024

The International Space Station will retire in 2024, by then, China becomes the only nation that will have a space station. A Chinese official said that the whole world would then rely on its service for space research.

The leaving of the International Space Station would make China the only one in service for the space program. Lei Fanpei, chairman of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. (CASC) said that China's space station may be the only one left in service when the International Space Station retires in 2024. He further said that China plans to launch experimental core module of its space station in 2018. This involves a Long March-5 heavy load carrier rocket.

 Meanwhile, the 20-tonne combination space station will be sent into orbit in 2022. Lei added the China's space station will include a core module and two lab modules, with ports that will permit many spacecraft to dock, according to DNA.

China alone axiomatically cannot have an "international" space station.

And ISS will still be there after 2024https://t.co/g604ApAauF

— Jonathan Jeckell (@jon_jeckell) October 8, 2016

China has begun launching modules of space lab, the Tiangong-1 and Tiangong-2. The latter space module was just recently launched using the Long March 2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on September 14, 2016. Meanwhile, the Tianhe-1, a core space station is scheduled for launching in 2018., which will be carried by Long March 5, the most powerful Chinese rocket, according to TeCake.

The Chinese astronauts known as Taikonauts could stay in the space station for more than one year. The said space station has a life span of 10 years in orbit 400 km above the earth surface. It aims to enhance the researcher's ability to demonstrate science experiments such as microgravity and the space environment. Cargo spacecraft could also travel from the Earth to a space station to provide supplies for the astronauts.