Humans have entered low Earth orbit (LEO) in the past half century thanks to the Salyut, Skylab, Mir and Tiangong programs, and of course International Space Station (ICC). Apart from providing incredible views of the Earth, these space stations have proven that humans can live and work in space while bringing unique lessons about microgravity and space. They taught us about the challenges of life in microgravity and the fragility of life beyond our planetary cradle.
But changing dynamics in the space industry are set to usher in a new era of private space stations tasked with continuing that legacy. The ISS – a decades-long, multi-national grand undertaking of cooperation and technological feat – is coming to an end and could be decommissioned around 2030.
In turn, private companies – including SpaceX, Blue Origin, Planet, Rocket Lab, Virgin Galactic, Axiom Space and Sierra Space – are poised to ushering in a new era of commercial space stations.
Connected: NASA is looking for private outposts to build on the legacy of the International Space Station
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“In the short term, commercial space stations are an important next step in filling the gap left by the impending decommissioning of the ISS,” said Lauren Andrade, spokesperson for the Beyond Earth Institute. “Also, commercial space stations offer flexibility and capital that government-run projects simply don’t have.”
Blue Origin — along with companies like Redwire, Sierra Space and Boeing — is building Orbital reef, a mixed-use business and science park in LEO. The space station will be a scalable, modular outpost for research, manufacturing, tourism and more. Its main habitat will contain 10 crew cabins.
“Commercial space stations open up more opportunities for both government and private actors to engage in space activities,” Andrade told Space.com.
Both the scope of activities and the modules themselves will be expanded. Orbital Reef will include Sierra Space’s large inflatable integrated flexible environment (LIFE) habitat, which will be packed into a payload fairing on a New Glenn rocket, but then expanded once in orbit. Such a design would provide much more volume than the discrete, solid ISS modules launched by NASA’s now-retired Space Shuttle and Russian launch vehicles.
Sierra Space said in 2023 that it aims to launch a LIFE track around the end of 2026. This module will have a volume of 10,600 cubic feet (300 cubic meters). The company also offered a larger unit of 49,440 cubic feet (1,400 cubic meters). By comparison, the Kibo module, the largest single module on the ISS, has a volume of 5,474 cubic feet (155 cubic meters).
As part of the transition to a new generation of space stations, Axiom Space hopes to send its first commercial module to the ISS until 2026
Both Axiom Space and Blue Origin received support for these initiatives from NASA’s Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program. The Starlab the space station — a project involving Nanoracks, Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin — also won a NASA award and could appear as early as 2028.
The plan is for NASA to be just one of many customers, not the sole supporter. Indeed, another interested party is the European Space Agency, which has signed a memorandum of understanding with Voyager Space and Airbus for Starlab. This illustrates strong early interest, but more and more diverse commercial partners will be sought. Other players include California-based startup Vast, which plans to launch its first private station, Haven-1around mid-2025 on SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
Even if there is a gap between the decommissioning of the ISS and the entry of commercial stations into orbit, Tiangong Space Station will provide a permanent presence in space. China’s three-module orbital outpost was completed in 2022 and now hosts crews of three astronauts for six months at a time. In addition, the country is already looking at commercial opportunities for Tiangong – for example, by expanding the outpost with new modules and hosting trade and tourist missions.
Extending beyond LEO
International projects will also expand beyond LEO. Construction of NASA’s lunar orbiter Gateway Space Station will soon launch into lunar orbit as a base for future exploration of the moon. The space station will provide a human habitation outside LEO for the first time and will include commercial partners.
Because Gateway will orbit beyond Earth’s protective magnetic field, will face a number of additional challenges. These include higher radiation levels that threaten both electronics and astronauts, as well as longer travel times, higher requirements for launch vehicles, and greater demands for communications and power.
Artemis 4, currently scheduled for 2028, will be the first mission to send astronauts to Gateway. Astronauts will live and work aboard the Habitable and Logistics Outpost, which is currently scheduled to launch in 2025, and NASA aims to add a second habitable module before the first crewed mission arrives.
The emergence of commercial space companies and the expansion of our lunar horizons may lead these companies to contribute to lunar exploration. Lunar orbit and surface habitats, LEO technologies and lunar exploration.
“As we’ve already seen with the expansion of the commercial space sector, I believe the future of commercial space stations is greater flexibility, faster progress,” Andrade said, “and fundamentally, a step toward breaking down barriers that limit human activity in space.”
The next 25 years promise significant advances in space exploration, driven by the ingenuity and ambition of private companies. With the right support and levels of commitment and interest, these will be the new orbital homes for research, innovation, business and international collaboration.
