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Humans have been in low Earth orbit (LEO) for the last half century thanks to the Salyut, Skylab, Mir and Tiangong programs and, of course, the International Space Station (ISS). Apart from providing incredible views of the Earth, these space stations have proven that humans can live and work in space while providing unique lessons about microgravity and the cosmos. They taught us about the challenges of living in microgravity and the fragility of life outside our planetary cage.
But changing dynamics in the space industry are ushering in a new era of private space stations tasked with continuing this legacy. The ISS — a major multi-national effort of cooperation and technological feats over the years — is coming to an end and could be decommissioned around 2030.
After that, private companies – including SpaceX, Blue Origin, Planet, Rocket Lab, Virgin Galactic, Axiom Space and Sierra Space – are about to creating a new era of commercial space stations.
Related: NASA looks to private jobs to build on the legacy of the International Space Station
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“In the short term, commercial space stations are the next step to fill the void left by the upcoming decommissioning of the ISS,” said Lauren Andrade, spokeswoman for the Beyond Earth Institute. “Furthermore, commercial space stations offer flexibility and capital that government-run projects lack.”
Blue Origin — along with companies like Redwire, Sierra Space and Boeing — are building Orbital Reef, a multi-use business and science park in LEO. The space station will be a modular, scalable center for research, manufacturing, tourism and more. There will be 10 crew cabins in the main habitat.
“Commercial space stations open up more avenues for both government and private actors to engage in space activities,” Andrade told Space.com.
The scope of both the activities and the modules themselves will be expanded. Orbital Reef will be featured in Sierra Space’s an inflatable Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) habitat, will be packed into the payload fairing of the New Glenn rocket but will then be expanded once in orbit. Such a design will provide much more volume than the discrete, rigid 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 probe for LIFE around the end of 2026. That module will have a volume of 10,600 cubic feet (300 cubic meters). The company has also proposed a larger, 49,440 cubic foot (1,400 cubic m) module. In comparison, the Kibo module, the largest single ISS module, has a volume of 5,474 cubic feet (155 cubic m).
As part of the transition to a new generation of space stations, Axiom Space hopes to send its first commercial module to the ISS by 2026.
Both Axiom Space and Blue Origin have received support for these initiatives from NASA’s Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program. The IS Astrolabe A space station – a project involving Nanoracks, Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin – also won a NASA prize and could arrive as early as 2028.
The plan is for NASA to be just one of several customers, rather than the only accessory. Indeed, another interested party is the European Space Agency, which signed a memorandum of understanding with Voyager Space and Airbus for Starlab. This shows strong early interest, but will require more and more diverse commercial partners. 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 commercial stations entering orbit, the Tiangong space station it will ensure a continuous presence in the space. China’s three-module orbital outpost was completed in 2022 and now houses 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 commercial and tourist missions.
Expansion beyond LEO
International projects will also expand beyond LEO. Construction of NASA’s lunar orbit Gateway space station soon in the orbit of the moon as a basis for future lunar exploration. The space station will provide a human habitat outside of LEO for the first time and will involve commercial partners.
Because Orbit Gate will be beyond Earth’s protective magnetic field, will face a range of additional challenges. These include higher levels of radiation, which endanger both the electronics and the astronauts, as well as longer journey times, higher launcher demands, and greater communication and power requirements.
Artemis 4, currently scheduled for 2028, will be the first mission to send astronauts to Gateway. The 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.
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—NASA, private companies are relying on market demand for future space stations after ISS
These companies could contribute to the exploration of the moon due to the emergence of commercial space companies and the expansion of our field to the moon. Lunar orbit and surface habitats, LEO tech and lunar exploration.
“As we have already seen with the expansion of the commercial space sector, I believe that the future of commercial space stations is one of greater flexibility, faster progress,” said Andrade, “and, at its core, a step towards disruption down the. obstacles that limit human activity in space.”
In the next 25 years, it is expected that significant progress will be made in space exploration, driven by the ingenuity and ambition of private companies. With the right support and the appropriate levels of participation and interest, these will become new orbits for research, innovation, business and international cooperation.
