Point Nemo has the distinction of being the most remote place on Earth. Located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, its extreme isolation makes it the perfect site for a spacecraft graveyard — and the final resting place of the International Space Station (ISS), which is due to be decommissioned in 2030 or 2031 after three decades of service.
Point Nemo: An Underwater Graveyard (For Spacecrafts)
When it comes to finding peace and quiet, there are few places that beat Point Nemo. The maritime spot lies deep in the Pacific Ocean, 1,670 miles (2,688 kilometers) from shore.
With the coordinates 48°52.6′S 123°23.6′W, Point Nemo is equidistant from Ducie Island, one of the Pitcairn Islands, which lies to its north; Motu Nui, one of the Easter Islands, which lies northeast; and Maher Island, which is part of Antarctica and lies to its south, according to NOAA. Often, the closest humans are those travelling in the ISS.
This makes it particularly suitable (although not entirely uncontroversial)for its role as an underwater graveyard for out-of-use spacecraft. According to a paper published in the California Western International Law Journal, Point Nemo has been used as a dump yard for space junk since the early 1970s. According to another paper published in Criminology & Criminal Justice, more than 260 pieces of space debris have landed there.
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The Final Resting Place Of The ISS
The ISS was launched into orbit in 1998 and has hosted astronauts since 2000, when one NASA astronaut (Bill Shepherd) and two Russian cosmonauts (Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev) boarded the craft, kick-starting more than two decades of continuous human presence in space, according to the ISS National Laboratory.
Since then, it has enabled researchers to conduct experiments that have contributed to improved weather monitoring, medical research, and agricultural development, as well as providing a test ground for technologies that could prove crucial to interplanetary communication and future space exploration.
Under current plans, the ISS will continue to operate until it turns 32, in 2030, when it will be deorbited safely and in a way that avoids contact with people — in short: by crashing into the Pacific Ocean at Point Nemo.
This first involves lowering the 463-ton (420-tonne) space station using propulsive technology and by harnessing Earth’s atmospheric drag. Once this has been completed and astronauts aboard have been returned to Earth, the ISS will be directed towards its target (Point Nemo), and operators will initiate a large re-entry burn. Some parts of the spacecraft are expected to vaporize on route. Other sections will crash into the Pacific, joining the remains of other disused spacecraft.
This process will be managed by NASA, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and the State Space Corporation Roscosmos, all five of whom have been responsible for operating the ISS since its launch.
Without the ISS, NASA will rely on private industry and join the “robust commercial marketplace in low Earth orbit.” As per NASA: “In the future, the United States plans to transition its operations in low Earth orbit to commercially-owned and -operated destinations to ensure continued access to essential research and technology development.”
How Point Nemo Got Its Name
For many, Pixar’s animated clownfish may be the main point of reference when it comes to the name Nemo. But the inspiration comes from the conflicted seaman, Captain Nemo, in Jules Verne’s book Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.
Nemo also means “no one” in Latin, which feels pretty apt given its location.
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Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
- This article references information from NOAA: Where is Point Nemo?
- This article references information from the ISS National Laboratory: History of the ISS
- This article references information from NASA: Frequently Asked Questions About The International Space Station Plans
- This article references information from the ESA: About the International Space Station
- This article references information from a study in California Western International Law Journal: From Outer Space to Ocean Depths: The ‘Spacecraft Cemetery’ and the Protection of the Marine Environment in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction
- Criminology & Criminal Justice: An astro-green criminological examination of orbital space debris
