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NASA’s plan for the ISS involves a controlled deorbit, a process crucial for ensuring the safety of both space debris management and future missions. Leaving the ISS adrift in orbit after its operational life could pose hazards to other satellites and spacecraft—risking catastrophic collisions in an increasingly crowded space environment. By steering the ISS to a controlled descent, NASA aims to minimize potential risks associated with an uncontrolled re-entry, which could scatter debris unpredictably across the Earth’s atmosphere.