Airbus announced his plans build the successor to the International Space Station. The European company signed an agreement with Voyager Space, a startup that designs sustainable projects for space. The alliance will allow them to compete against other giants in a contest organized by NASA.
With the imminent retirement of the International Space Station, the agencies are working on a project that will keep research tasks in orbit. Airbus will join a group that includes Blue Origin, Axiom Space and Northrop Grumman, each with different ideas that will compete against each other for a NASA contract.
In accordance with Financial Times, NASA will allocate 550 million dollars to four consortia during the first phase of the competition. Companies will develop design proposals for ships or space stations, where the primary requirement is that they be commercially viable.
Airbus will take the place of Lockheed Martin and become Voyager’s industrial partner. Together they will develop star lab a commercial space station that will come online by the end of the decade. Unlike the International Space Station, Starlab will be built and operated by a private consortium, leaving governments as tenants.
“I think governments will benefit as they won’t have to bear the large capital expenditures associated with this,” said Dylan Taylor, Voyager’s CEO. According to Taylor, this approach will allow you to innovate faster in areas that require immediate attentionsuch as climate change or food shortages.
The consortium includes the only European company participating in NASA’s program to build the replacement for the International Space Station. According to Jean-Marc Nasr, Airbus’ head of space systems, this alliance — led by Voyager — aligns the interests of both companies and their respective space agencies.
NASA will choose the replacement for the International Space Station in 2025
Although Airbus and Voyager have a solid propositionthey are not the only ones in the fight for a million-dollar contract to build and operate the next International Space Station. blue originthe company founded by Jeff Bezos, partnered with Sierra Space to build Orbital Reef, a “mixed-use business park” made up of pods that conduct commercial, industrial, and research activities.
For his part, Northrop Grumman and Axiom Space propose solutions closer to the current concept of the International Space Station. The idea is to transition smoothly to commercial operations once the ISS completes its cycle and leaves orbit. Both bet on a modular design with adaptable technology that will make it possible to carry out more affordable civil and commercial missions.
The program of NASA plans to choose two designs in 2025. The winner will sign a million-dollar contract with the US space agency and will be free to seek other clients to offer their services. Experts estimate that the cost of operating the next ISS will exceed one billion dollars annually.
While that happens, NASA adjusts the details to destroy the International Space Station. The agency will build a tugboat to remove it from orbit and outline its landing at Point Nemo, the place located in the Pacific Ocean where there is no risk to the population.