China Wants to Double the Size of Tiangong as the ISS Nears the End of Its Mission.

China was effectively shut out of the International Space Station after the United States passed the Wolf Amendment in 2011, so it built its own. If the ISS retires on schedule around 2030 and no commercial successor is ready, China's Tiangong could become the only permanently crewed outpost in Earth orbit.

The International Space Station is still the larger and more international laboratory in orbit. Tiangong is smaller, newer, and controlled by one country. But the political meaning of the two stations is starting to change. If the ISS reaches the end of its planned operational life around 2030, and if no commercial successor is ready to host crews by then, China’s Tiangong station could become the only permanently crewed outpost in Earth orbit. …