This distributed image published by NASA on September 19, 2024 shows the International Space Station taken from inside the window of the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavor.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX plans to partner with a California-based startup to fly commercial crew missions to the International Space Station, the companies announced Thursday.
The mission is subject to NASA approval and also involves Vasto, a company aiming to launch the world’s first commercial space station as early as next year.
“Delivering payloads and crewed missions to the ISS is an important part of Vast’s strategy, and we look forward to further collaborating with NASA and other space agencies around the world,” Vast CEO Max Haot said in a statement. “We can do it,” he said, without disclosing a schedule.
SpaceX has flown three commercial missions to orbital labs with Axiom Space and is preparing for a fourth mission.
It also partnered with billionaire Jared Isaacman’s startup Polaris on two orbital voyages, one of which marked the first spacewalk by a non-professional astronaut.
Isaacman was nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to be the next NASA Administrator, reflecting an era of expanded public-private partnerships in space.
“We are excited to work with Vasto to build opportunities and destinations that bring interstellar travel to more people,” said SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell.
Such missions cater to both wealthy individuals and sovereign governments.
The last Axiom mission included astronauts from Italy, Sweden, and Turkey, and their seats were sponsored by their respective countries.
Vasto, which was founded in 2021, said it is actively discussing future missions with multiple governments, including the Czech Republic.
The ISS is scheduled to be decommissioned in 2030, and Vasto is one of several companies competing to build and launch the world’s first commercial space station.
The company plans to launch ministation Haven-1 in 2025, followed by Haven-2, a larger station designed to completely replace the ISS.
“Vasto’s long-term ambition is to create an artificial gravity habitat that will allow humans to live in space,” the company said.
Other candidates for the first commercial space station include Axiom Space, Voyager Space in partnership with Airbus, and Blue Origin in partnership with Sierra Space.
© 2024 AFP
Source: SpaceX launches more private astronaut missions to the ISS (December 19, 2024) from https://phys.org/news/2024-12-spacex-private-astronaut-missions-iss.html2024 Retrieved December 20th
This document is subject to copyright. No part may be reproduced without written permission, except in fair dealing for personal study or research purposes. Content is provided for informational purposes only.
