In January, the Obama Administration decided the $100 billion International Space Station (ISS) would see continued use until 2024 in efforts to continue international cooperation on scientific research. Senior White House Advisor on Science and Technology John Holdren called the ISS a “unique facility that offers enormous scientific and social benefits.”

The ISS was launched in 1998. The structure, which is as large as a football field, is in need of constant repair. According to ISS scientist Julie Robinson, benefits outweigh costs, citing that goals include “discoveries [that] cannot be made anywhere else, such as Earth remote sensing instruments that provide climate data.” Robotic arms now used in brain surgery and MRI machines were originally developed for no-gravity use in space.

Source: Space Travel