After all, Russia's withdrawal from the ISS program is not as imminent as previously thought. Russian space officials announced last year, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine, that the country would leave the ISS partnership sometime after 2024 to concentrate on building its own outpost in low Earth orbit. We learned today (April 27) that Russia will actually stay aboard for a few more years because that hazy departure date left room for that possibility. NASA officials wrote in an update this afternoon that "Russia has confirmed it will support continued station operations through 2028". The update also stated that the other major ISS partners—the space agencies of Europe, Canada, and Japan—have committed to supporting the orbiting laboratory through the anticipated end of its operational life in 2030, joining NASA in this commitment. The orbiting lab was built by the ISS partners in 1998, and astronaut crews have been rotating through it ever since November 2000. During that time, 266 individuals from 20 distinct nations have visited the ISS and directed in excess of 3,300 examinations in its one of a kind microgravity conditions, as per NASA authorities. In today's update, agency officials wrote, "Now, in its third decade of operations, the station is in the decade of results when the platform can maximize its scientific return." "Results are compounding, new benefits are materializing, and innovative research and technology demonstrations are building on previous work." NASA is getting ready to take over in low Earth orbit (LEO) even though the ISS still has a lot of life left in it. In the hope that at least one of the private space station concepts will be operational prior to the ISS's fiery (but controlled) reentry into Earth's atmosphere, the agency is providing funding for their development. NASA officials have stated that the key to extending humanity's footprint to the moon and Mars is a long-term, crewed presence in LEO. Business LEO stations won't just permit us to continue to find out about what off-Earth life means for the body, they say, yet will likewise assist with invigorating an orbital economy that can drive development out into profound space.