Bigelow Aerospace – Spaceflight Now

NASA chief warns of gap after retirement of International Space Station

November 11, 2020 Stephen Clark

The International Space Station is likely to continue operating for another decade, but without more government support, a privately-owned outpost may not be ready in time to replace it, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said.

Bigelow announces plans for private astronaut flights to space station

June 14, 2019 Stephen Clark

Bigelow Space Operations says it will charge $52 million per seat to send private astronauts to the International Space Station aboard Crew Dragon ferry ships, and has already paid “substantial sums” to SpaceX for up to four dedicated crew missions to the orbiting research complex.

NASA wrestles with what to do with International Space Station after 2024

May 20, 2018 Stephen Clark

Lawmakers last week questioned the Trump administration’s proposal to end direct U.S. government support of the International Space Station in 2025, citing concerns about the economic viability of commercial outposts in low Earth orbit.

Bigelow’s expandable module goes into overtime on space station

December 6, 2017 Stephen Clark

A commercial module mounted outside the International Space Station last year will remain attached to the orbiting research complex for at least three more years, carrying out additional tests for future space habitats and serving as a storage closet for the lab’s crew.

NASA picks 6 companies to develop prototype space habitats

August 12, 2016 William Harwood

NASA has selected six companies to work on designs for deep space habitat modules that could be used by astronauts living and working near the moon as technology is developed for eventual flights to Mars, the agency announced Tuesday.

Video: BEAM welcomes first astronaut

June 6, 2016 Justin Ray

International Space Station astronaut Jeff Williams opened the hatch and floated into the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, or BEAM, experimental habitat today for the first time.

NASA calls off inflation of experimental station habitat

May 26, 2016 Stephen Clark

Mission control halted the expansion of Bigelow Aerospace’s experimental space station module Thursday after the structure did not grow as predicted when air began flowing into it.

Bigelow’s station habitat to be expanded Thursday

May 25, 2016 Stephen Clark

Space station flight engineer Jeff Williams will send commands Thursday to pump air into an experimental soft-sided module developed by commercial space habitat builder Bigelow Aerospace, expanding the structure to four times its current size in a stepping stone to future orbital destinations. Live video begins at 5:30 a.m. EDT (0930 GMT).

Q&A with John Elbon, VP and general manager of Boeing’s space exploration division

May 12, 2016 Stephen Clark

Boeing’s work on the International Space Station, the CST-100 Starliner commercial crew capsule and NASA’s heavy-lift Space Launch System are under the umbrella of John Elbon, who leads the company’s space exploration division in Houston.

Q&A with Mark Mulqueen, Boeing’s space station program manager

April 24, 2016 Stephen Clark

The International Space Station’s oldest sections launched nearly 17 years ago, and with the huge orbiting research complex now well into its operational life as a microgravity science lab, prime contractor Boeing’s job is keeping the outpost going, according to Mark Mulqueen, who manages the aerospace company’s space station program.