Part 2 on the Race to Create a Permanent Human Presence in Low-Earth-Orbit

May 17, 2023

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ISS post contenders — Five commercial space stations are planned before the end of this decade. In Part 1 we looked at Axiom and Blue Origin. In Part 2 the three remaining contenders are Nanoracks with Starlab (top Left) and Outposts (top right), Northrop Grumman (bottom left) and Vast (bottom right).

In Part 1 of our look at the aspirational goals of commercial space station developers, we looked at the Axiom Space Station and Blue Origin’s Orbital Reef with both planning to establish a long-term Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) human presence. Both are seen as successors to the International Space Station (ISS) which NASA plans to de-commission and de-orbit around 2030 unless plans change. But these two are not the only space station aspirants seeking to establish themselves in LEO space. Joining them are planned space station projects by Nanoracks, Northrop Grumman, and Vast.

Nanoracks Starlab and Outpost

Nanoracks is the operating company of Voyager Space, founded in 2009 and located in Denver, Colorado. In December 2021, NASA contracted the company to design Starlab, a commercial space station. The current plan is to launch Starlab into LEO in 2028 with NASA as the first occupant.

Nanoracks is no stranger to space. On March 14, 2023, a SpaceX resupply mission to the ISS carried eight Nanoracks payloads of which a number were cubesats. Nanoracks, so far, has sent 25 CubeSats to space on behalf of mostly academic clients. It also has created payloads containing scientific experiments that are currently being conducted on the ISS.

The company plans to put crewed habitats in space. The first is Starlab. The second is Outpost

Starlab is a commercial space station that will be open to NASA, other space agencies, commercial companies and even space tourists. The planned 2028 launch will put Starlab in LEO. No additional follow-up builds are required. Onboard facilities will include space for scientific, industrial, and manufacturing research to take advantage of the microgravity environment. Sightseeing will be encouraged.

Nanoracks states it will put the first continuously crewed free-flying commercial space station called Starlab in orbit in 2028. (Image credit: Nanoracks/Starlab)

Outpost provides a service that repurposes spent booster rockets left in LEO. Repurposing every upper stage is its mission statement. Nanracks has created a Mission Extension Kit (MEK) and recently demonstrated friction milling in space, a first step to developing a recycling, manufacturing and construction capability in space. The milling was accomplished using a Maxar Technologies robotic arm featuring a cutting tool operating at high rotational speeds to reduce orbital debris. Outpost end products will be fuel depots, human and environmental habitats (gardens in space) and other specialized structures. Needless to say, the technology of Outpost is likely how we will create the infrastructure that we send for long-duration space journeys within and beyond the Solar System.

Spent boosters will be repurposed by MEK, a suite of infrastructure-as-a-service tools to maximize the use of materials already in the LEO space to create Outposts. (Image credit: Nanorocks/Outpost)

Northrop Grumman Plans for ISS-Lite

Northrop Grumman (NG) was one of the companies that signed a space agreement with NASA to develop a LEO space station. Grumman was the builder of the lunar lander known as the LEM that was used in the Apollo Program. In 1994, Northrop acquired Grumman. Since then the combined company has continued its involvement with NASA. NG provides the Cygnus module that resupplies the ISS. They engineered the James Webb Telescope.

Their plans for a commercial space station are to build a habitat with the core element to be launched in 2028 followed by two additions with completion in 2032. The NG station would initially support a crew of 4 and with expansion, up to 8. Its projected life is 15 years. The method of construction is tried and true, a copy of how ISS was built.

When NASA placed its bet on commercial suppliers who could help it transition from the ISS to a replacement, Northrop Grumman was a logical choice having worked with the agency for more than five decades. Its modular design very much emulates how ISS was constructed. (Image credit: Northrop Grumman)

Vast Space Wants to Beat The Competition and Add Artificial Gravity

Vast Space is on an aggressive schedule to beat all comers to a commercial space station in LEO. It recently signed a contract with SpaceX to launch its commercial space station called Haven 1 in August 2025. The date is important because it will be ahead of Axiom with its first module expected to fly later in that year. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will carry the Haven 1 to orbit and will be followed by a Crew Dragon that will ferry 4 to occupy it for up to 30 days. This will give the Long Beach, California startup bragging rights.

Haven 1 is small by space station standards, about a tenth the size of the ISS. Vast is selling reserved seats for passengers to experience not just microgravity but also the artificial kind. The company plans to spin Haven 1 using centrifugal force to create the equivalent of 17% of Earth’s gravity. That’s slightly greater than lunar gravity at 16.6% of Earth’s. Even a small amount of gravity will make a difference in the health of visitors during month-long stays.

Is the timetable ambitious? Does Vast have the funding to make a go of it? Stay tuned.