Billionaires and Tech Barons Vying To Build a Private Space Station

'Private space stations have been raising billions of dollars in an effort to build future hubs — and even one day cities — in orbit,' according to a recent report from the U.K. newspaper, the Telegraph:

Axiom Space, a US business aiming to build its own station, has raised more than $500m (£400m). Vast, a space business backed by crypto billionaire Jed McCaleb, is plotting two stations before the end of the decade. Gravitics, meanwhile, has raised tens of millions of dollars for its modular space 'real estate'. Nasa itself, along with other space agencies, is planning a further station, Lunar Gateway, which will orbit the Moon. Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin has also announced plans to build a space station by 2027, called Orbital Reef, which it has described as an orbital 'mixed-use business park'. Working with US aerospace business Sierra Space, Orbital Reef will be made up of inflatable pods, which can be launched on a regular rocket before being 'blown up' in space. Sierra Space says these modules could house in-space manufacturing or pharmaceutical technology...

Since 2021, Nasa has also offered to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to private companies to develop commercial space stations that could succeed the ISS. So far, it has handed $400m to companies including Axiom, Blue Origin (which is working with Sierra Space), and Northrop Grumman... Vast hopes to launch its first space station, Haven-1, as soon as 2025. This simple module will be the first privately-run space station and will be occupied by a crew of four over four two week expeditions... While Vast was not one of the businesses to secure funding from Nasa, it hopes by launching the first proof-of-concept space station as soon as next year it can leapfrog rival efforts and claim the agency as an anchor customer. From there, it can target other space agencies or companies looking to conduct research.

Some interesting perspectives from the article:
Chris Quilty, an analyst at Quilty Space: 'If China were not building its own space station it is arguable whether Nasa would have felt enjoined to maintain a human presence in low Earth orbit.'
Tim Farrar, founder of TMF Associates, which advises some of the world's top space companies: 'Unless they either secure government funding or focus on space tourism, they will inevitably have to rely on the largess of either billionaires or gullible investors who are space enthusiasts.'
Thanks to Slashdot reader fjo3 for sharing the news.

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