China's Expanding Space Station: A Rival to NASA's ISS

China plans to double the size of its space station, Tiangong, from three to six modules, offering an alternative platform for near-Earth missions as the NASA-led International Space Station (ISS) nears the end of its lifespan. The Chinese space station will have an operational lifetime of more than 15 years, and China expects to become a major space power by 2030, around the same time the ISS is expected to be decommissioned. Despite China's aspirations for space diplomacy, the European Space Agency (ESA) has shelved plans for collaboration with Tiangong due to budgetary and political constraints. Russia also has plans to build its own space station with the participation of BRICS countries.