the ISS before the existing craft is retired, detaching once Axiom's platform is self-sustaining. Its first module is supposed to launch in late 2020, built by one of the companies that built the ISS.

None of the companies' leaders expressed interest in taking over the ISS, which would be inherently complex due to the multinational nature of the existing platform.

"No one is looking at leasing the ISS, to run the entire station, as the ISS isn't just a U.S. entity," Tommy Sanford, director of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, told CNBC. "There are agreements in place with almost 30 other nations for the space station."

Those agreements, according to NanoRacks' Manber, mean the ISS has "something for everybody," but from a commercial standpoint "doesn't really get us to where we wantDescription: Quarterly report published by Tarleton State University discussing the economic conditions across the United States, the state of Texas, and Erath County, Texas. Data is compiled from statistics and information available from government agencies with summaries and some commentary.