The major problem in working with the space station is in getting large sections of construction into orbit and then connecting it up to other sections in order to finish up major items. The space shuttle is at best a dubious and expensive instrument but it is the only way at present to deliver and manipulate large structures in space. Unmanned rockets are quite capable of delivering large structures, but there is no way of precisely positioning them to join with other structures to complete a project. What is needed is a vehicle permanantly stationed in orbit with manipulative arms to capture and work with large structures put in orbit by unmanned rockets which are relatively reliable and cheap. It can be refueled by modules sent into orbit by unmanned rockets. It makes much more sense constructing interplanetary and perhaps interstellar units in close Earth orbit than the overwhelming expense of setting up a base on the Moon which is precarious for people there and constitutes a gravity well which requires fuel for release to sending units further out to the planets. The space tug could be supplemented by spacecycles - small one or two man units used mainly for transportation of space suited astronauts between orbit locations.
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The coming demise of the valuable Hubble telescope could have been avoided if a mobile unit such as the space tug had been in place. Latest reports have it that the telescope's life is only limited by the inability to replace the orientation gyroscopes which have a life much less than the rest of the components.
Arthur C Clarke and Stanley Kubrick showed us the blueprint for all this in the late-1960s "2001: A Space Odyssey." We need, not only 1.) a "space tug," but also 2.) an "Earth-to-orbit-to-Earth" passenger vehicle, 3.) an "Earth-to-orbit-to-Earth" heavy lifter cargo vehicle (both of these to replace the outdated Shuttles), 4.) an "Earth-orbit-to-Lunar-orbit-to-Earth-orbit" cargo/passenger shuttle, and 5.) a "Lunar-orbit-to-Lunar-surface-to-Lunar-orbit" lander/launch vehicle. 6.) A Lunar Orbit space station may also prove useful; 7.) a few decades ago, there was also interest in an "L5 Habitat" space colony.
We'll need most of these if we ever decide to become serious about exploring the rest of the Solar System: the obvious place to launch exploration vessels from is the Moon. Using solar power, factories on the Moon could build the appropriate probes from locally-mined materials, solar-powered MagLev rail systems could launch the probes from the surface of the Moon to any destination in the Solar System or beyond. These are straightforward engineering challenges, not hypothetical possibilities- we only have to justify the cost and pay for it.