When will a free flying commercial space station become operational?

Space stations have offered platforms for science that can only be performed in microgravity, such as studying human physiology and psychology in space. International Space Station operations have been extended through 2030, and China’s almost completed Tiangong space station is planned to remain operational for at least a decade.

In line with the current intense activity in commercial human spaceflight, there are a number of planned commercial space stations in Earth orbit that aim to serve as platforms for science, tourism, and research for manufacturing in zero gravity. These include:

• Starlab by Nanoracks, Voyager Space, and Lockheed Martin,
• Orbital Reef by Blue Origin,
• Axiom space station by Axiom Space, and
• a space station by Northrop Grumman.

Most of these stations plan on going operational between 2025 to 2030.