Congress has approved a $19bn bill that will enable Nasa to launch an additional shuttle mission and develop a heavy-lift vehicle.

The US House passed the Nasa Reauthorisation Act which will allow tha agency the authority to move forward with President Barack Obama’s strategy, encouraging commercial development of space transportation systems.

The bill will extend the shuttle programme from February 2011 to June 2011, according to CNN.

An additional shuttle mission will help stock additional supplies on the International Space Station.

The bill has also extended the space station’s life by five additional years up to 2020.

Commercial Spaceflight Federation executive director John Gedmark told CNN that America’s space industry was taking a quantum leap forward with this historic shift.

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“This bill will allow multiple private companies to move forward with developing this capability,” he said.