Vast and SpaceX plan to launch the first commercial space station in 2025
Another company is racing to launch the first commercial space station. Vast is partnering with SpaceX begin its Haven-1 station as early as August 2025. A Falcon 9 rocket will launch the platform into low Earth orbit, with a subsequent Vast-1 mission with Crew Dragon to ferry four people to Haven-1 for up to 30 days bring. Vast accepts bookings for crews wishing to participate in scientific or philanthropic work. The company has the option of a second manned SpaceX mission.
Haven-1 is relatively small. Not much larger than SpaceX’s capsule, it’s primarily intended for science and small-scale orbital manufacturing for the four people who will dock. However, Vast hopes to make Haven-1 just a module in a larger station, and it can simulate the moon’s gravity by spinning.
As TechCrunch Remarks, the 2025 target is ambitious and could see Vast beat well-known competitors in deploying a private space station. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin doesn’t expect to launch Orbital Reef until the second half of the decade. Voyager, Lockheed Martin and Nanoracks don’t expect to run theirs Starlab facility before 2027. Axiom has the best chance of improving Vast with a planned launch in late 2025.
Given the challenges and costs of building an orbital habitat, there is no guarantee that any of these timelines will last – this must be a safe vehicle that will comfortably support humans for an extended period of time, not just the duration of a rocket launch. However, this suggests that stations represent the next major phase of private spaceflight thereafter tourism And lunar missions.
