NASA Buys Private Inflatable Room for Space Station

[Buster's Uncle]

NASA Buys Private Inflatable Room for Space Station
By Mike Wall | SPACE.com – 18 hrs ago.. .

 
NASA has officially signed a deal to attach an inflatable private module to the International Space Station, space agency officials confirmed today (Jan. 11).
 
Under the new deal, NASA will pay $17.8 million to the Nevada-based private spaceflight firm Bigelow Aerospace for the company's Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM), which will be affixed to the orbiting lab as a technology demonstration.
 
"This partnership agreement for the use of expandable habitats represents a step forward in cutting-edge technology that can allow humans to thrive in space safely and affordably, and heralds important progress in U.S. commercial space innovation," NASA deputy chief Lori Garver said in a statement.
 
Today's announcement confirms reports that surfaced earlier this week. Garver and Bigelow founder and president Robert Bigelow will discuss the BEAM program at a media event Jan. 16 at Bigelow Aerospace facilities in North Las Vegas, NASA officials said.
 
BEAM is likely to be similar to Bigelow's Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 prototypes, which the company launched to orbit in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Both Genesis modules are 14.4 feet long by 8.3 feet wide (4.4 by 2.5 meters), with about 406 cubic feet (11.5 cubic m) of pressurized volume.
 
NASA officials have said that BEAM could be on orbit about two years after getting an official go-ahead. The module will likely be launched by one of the agency's commerical cargo suppliers, California-based SpaceX or Virginia-based Orbital Sciences Corp.
 
Bigelow's dreams don't stop at the International Space Station. The company wants to launch and link up several of its larger expandable modules to create private space stations, which could be used by a variety of clients.
 
Tenants could get to orbiting Bigelow habitats in several different ways. The company has set up a partnership with SpaceX for use of its Dragon spacecraft and another one with Boeing, to use the aerospace giant's CST-100 capsule.
 
Bigelow is also eyeing a possible outpost on the moon, for which the company envisions using its BA-330 modules (so named because they offer 330 cubic meters of usable internal volume). Several BA-330 habitats, along with propulsion tanks and power units, would be joined together in space and then flown down to the lunar surface.
 
Lunar dirt would be piled over the modules to protect against radiation, thermal extremes and micrometeorite strikes. Then clients — be they explorers, scientists or tourists — could move in and set up shop on the moon.

http://news.yahoo.com/nasa-buys-private-inflatable-room-space-station-215818640.html

[Unorthodox]

So, I looked these suckers up. 

The "inflatable" wall is 6 inches thick of differing rad shielding fabric that make it safer against radiation than traditional shielding.  They inflate with a foam that adds stability to the wall and rates it better vs collision and mircrometeors than the traditional modules.  They come with their own power, bathrooms, propulsion, etc all included in a center tube.  It's really an ingenius design. 

http://bigelowaerospace.com/ba330.php

[Buster's Uncle]

Inflatable Private Space Stations: Bigelow's Big Dream
By Mike Wall | SPACE.com – 20 hrs ago.. .

 
NASA's decision to buy an inflatable new room for the International Space Station may push the module's builder —commercial spaceflight company Bigelow Aerospace — one step closer to establishing its own private stations in orbit.
 
Last week, NASA announced that it will pay $17.8 million for the Nevada-based company's Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM), which will be affixed to the huge orbiting lab as a technology demonstration.
 
NASA and Bigelow will discuss the deal during a media event Wednesday (Jan. 16) in North Las Vegas, where the company is headquartered. BEAM could help prove out the viability of inflatable crew habitats, potentially jump-starting Bigelow's ambitious plans in low-Earth orbit and, perhaps, on the surface of the moon.
 


Expanding access to space
 
Bigelow Aerospace was founded in 1999 by Robert Bigelow, who made his fortune in real estate and finance. He also owns the Budget Suites of America hotel chain, for example. [Photos: Bigelow's Inflatable Space Station Idea]
 
Bigelow Aerospace specializes in expandable habitats, which launch in a compact form and then inflate upon reaching space. The company says expandable modules offer greater on-orbit volume and better protection against radiation and micrometeoroid strikes than traditional "tin can" designs can provide.
 
Inflatable modules were first pursued seriously by NASA, which developed a design called TransHab (short for "Transit Habitat") for possible use on the International Space Station. When Congress cancelled the TransHab program in 2000, Bigelow officials licensed the patents and began adapting the technology for the company's own purposes.
 
The company's goals are big: to establish private space stations that could be used by many different clients for a variety of purposes, from research to tourism.
 
"We are primarily focused on providing sovereign clients (individual or groups of nations) and companies with the opportunity to lease space and resources aboard our habitats for a broad array of activities, ranging from turn-key astronautics to conducting ground-breaking and lucrative biotech research," Bigelow Aerospace's website states.
 
"We offer a way for countries to bolster their human spaceflight programs while at the same time reducing their budgets, or for smaller countries that thought human spaceflight was beyond their financial reach to enjoy capabilities that until now only the wealthiest nations have been able to sponsor."
 


Making it happen
 
Bigelow has already put hardware into space, launching the prototype modules Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 to orbit in 2006 and 2007, respectively.
 
Both Genesis habitats are 14.4 feet long by 8.3 feet wide (4.4 by 2.5 meters), with about 406 cubic feet (11.5 cubic m) of pressurized volume. The BEAM module that will be attached to the International Space Station in two years or so will likely be of similar size.
 
But Bigelow is developing a much larger module, called the BA-330 because it offers 330 cubic meters of usable internal volume. The company envisions linking up two or more BA-330s in orbit to create its first space stations, which have already attracted attention from potential clients.
 
For example, Bigelow has signed memoranda of understanding with seven governments that wish to use the company's orbiting facilities — Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Japan, Sweden and Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.
 
Bigelow will offer a variety of rental packages to its clients when the stations are up and running, perhaps starting with $28.75 million for an all-inclusive 30-day stay for one astronaut (the company has quoted this figure in the past).
 
Clients may have several different ways to reach Bigelow's habitats. The company has set up a partnership with the California-based firm SpaceX to use its Dragon spacecraft, and another with Boeing for use of its CST-100 capsule.
 
Bigelow's dreams don't stop in low-Earth orbit. Robert Bigelow has voiced an interest in setting up outposts on the moon, which would employ BA-330 habitats that are joined together in space, flown down to the lunar surface and then covered with moon dirt to protect against radiation, temperature extremes and micrometeorite impacts.
 
As such ambitious goals demonstrate, Bigelow seeks to fundamentally transform the way humanity uses space, opening up the final frontier to greater exploration and exploitation.
 
"Mr. Bigelow created Bigelow Aerospace with the express purpose of revolutionizing space commerce via the development of affordable, reliable and robust expandable space habitats," the company's website states.

http://news.yahoo.com/inflatable-private-space-stations-bigelows-big-dream-215809743.html

[Lord Avalon]

What else inflatable comes with the private room?  :naughty:

[Buster's Uncle]

A beachball.

[Buster's Uncle]

Inside NASA's Deal for an Inflatable Space Station Room
By Leonard David | SPACE.com – 22 hrs ago.. .

 
A new deal between NASA and a commercial spaceflight company to add a privately built module to the International Space Station could lead to future uses of the novel space technology beyond low-Earth orbit, space agency and company officials say.
 
NASA will pay $17.8 million to Bigelow Aerospace of North Las Vegas to build an inflatable module, test it and prep it for flight. The Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) is to be launched around the summer of 2015.
 
The space agency and Bigelow officials provided details of the contract in a Las Vegas briefing today (Jan. 16).
 
The new inflatable BEAM will be launched to the International Space Station by a Falcon 9 rocket built by another private spaceflight company, California-based SpaceX. The module will be cocooned inside the unpressurized cargo hold of SpaceX's Dragon capsule atop the Falcon 9. NASA has already purchased the launch of the SpaceX Falcon under a separate Commercial Resupply Services contract.
 
The module will be installed on an open berth of the station's Node 3 connecting module using a robotic arm. Once it is attached, the inflatable room will be activated by station astronauts, adding to the volume of orbiting laboratory. [Photos: Bigelow's Inflatable Space Station Idea]
 


An inflatable space room

 The module is cylindrical, weighs roughly 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) and is about 13 feet (4 meters) long and 10.5 feet (3.2 m) wide.
 
Bigelow Aerospace's founder and president is Robert Bigelow, a Las Vegas-based general contractor, real estate tycoon, hotel businessman and developer. Since 1999, his company has been focused on creating affordable inflatable space habitats for national space agencies and corporate clients.
 
In 2006 and 2007 the firm launched orbiting prototypes of its expandable habitat technology, Genesis 1 and Genesis 2. Work is ongoing within Bigelow Aerospace on BA 330 modules, structures that offer 12,000 cubic feet (330 cubic meters) of internal space. [Private Space Stations: A Gallery]
 
Michael Gold, director of Washington, D.C., operations and business growth for Bigelow Aerospace LLC, based in Chevy Chase, Md., said: "With Genesis 1 and 2, Bigelow Aerospace showed the world that it can achieve escape velocity from high costs. We're going to do this again with the BEAM, bringing both innovation and a vital demonstration of affordability to the crown jewel of NASA's human spaceflight program, the International Space Station."
 
A technology test
 
At this time, NASA's planned use of the BEAM is for technology demonstration, to validate experimental expandable habitat technology and let the space agency become more familiar with it, Gold told SPACE.com in an exclusive interview.
 
"I'm told the BEAM will be acoustically the quietest location aboard the station, due to the non-metallic nature of the structure," he said.
 
NASA's interest in the module for the International Space Station was first reported on SPACE.com by this reporter in January 2011 — so why the long glide path, some two years, for the project to become a reality?
 
In actuality, the program "moved forward with relative alacrity," Gold responded.
 
"The ISS is the pinnacle of the human spaceflight program. NASA went through a thorough amount of analysis prior to agreeing about BEAM … Analysis and study does take time," Gold said. "It demonstrates the attention and commitment to safety and quality that both NASA and Bigelow Aerospace have."
 
BEAM bonus in space

 For Bigelow, there is another bonus from having BEAM  attached to the space station: the chance to generate more business.
 
"Many in the foreign community perceive NASA as the gold star. I can think of no stronger statement relative to NASA's confidence both in Bigelow Aerospace and expandable habitat technology than their desire to place BEAM aboard the ISS," Gold said. "That speaks volumes not just domestically, but possibly more importantly, overseas as well. I think that any sovereign client or potential clientele should be paying attention to this.”
 
Gold said the private entrepreneurial firm is pleased to be working with NASA to further validate the promise and benefits of expandable habitat technology – and not only in low-Earth orbit, but beyond.
 
Beyond BEAM, Bigelow Aerospace is "moving aggressively" on the larger BA 330 module, "dedicating a great deal of resources" to expeditiously push forward an expandable habitat of that size.
 
Beyond LEO habitats

 According to the Bigelow Aerospace website, the BA 330 can function as an independent space station, and several BA 330 habitats can be connected together in a modular fashion to create an even larger and more capable orbital space complex.
 
Robert Bigelow and his team have extensively blueprinted concepts for their expandable habitats to be used at other destinations.
 
"Expandable habitats are an enabling technology that will make the dream of robust beyond-LEO human space exploration a reality," Gold said. "Regardless of the ultimate destination, be it L2 [Lagrange Point 2], the surface of the moon or even a historic mission to Mars, the large volumes provided by Bigelow Aerospace systems, combined with enhanced protection from radiation and physical debris, make habitats such as the BA 330 an essential part of any realistic beyond-LEO architecture."
 
Gold said he knows Capitol Hill wants to see a robust beyond-LEO human space exploration strategy, but that new funding will be hard to come by.
 
“The BA 330 and expandable habitats will not just offer enhanced protection from radiation and micrometeorites, but protect future astronauts from a much more dangerous threat …lack of funding," Gold concluded.

http://news.yahoo.com/inside-nasas-deal-inflatable-space-station-room-185203641.html

[Buster's Uncle]

Alpha Station: Private Inflatable Space Outpost Envisioned
By Leonard David | SPACE.com – 22 hrs ago.. .

 
The formal unveiling today (Jan. 16) of a NASA deal to add an inflatable room developed by commercial company  Bigelow Aerospace to the International Space Station is a forerunner of things to come. The private space firm has its eyes on setting up its own commercial space outpost, which it is calling Alpha Station.
 
The new room to be attached to the International Space Station — a Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) — will remain part of the orbiting laboratory for at least two years. During that time, astronauts will monitor the environment inside the module, recording a variety of parameters including temperature, pressure and radiation levels.
 
According to company details provided to SPACE.com, Bigelow Aerospace officials intend to use the BEAM to further validate the promise and benefits of expandable space habitats.

Space industry in orbit
 
The benefits of an expandable space habitat would be fully manifested by the Bigelow Aerospace's BA 330 module, far larger than the BEAM. A single BA 330 expandable habitat would offer 330 cubic meters of internal volume and be able to support a crew of up to six astronauts, Bigelow says. [Photos: Bigelow's Inflatable Space Station Idea]
 
Bigelow Aerospace is pushing forward with Alpha Station, which it bills as the "historic first commercial space station." The station initially would consist of two BA 330s. The company plans to have the two BA 330s ready by late 2016.
 
Alpha Station would be the first of a number of commercial Bigelow space stations deployed as demand grows and the on-orbit industry matures.
 
Bigelow Aerospace is open to entering into joint ventures with interested partners, be they governments, corporations or even individuals, for future stations.
 
"Nations such as Japan, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Sweden could secure the future of their human spaceflight programs and dramatically increase the size of their astronaut corps. Smaller countries with no human spaceflight experience such as Singapore or the United Arab Emirates could take their first bold steps into space in a rapid and affordable fashion," according to a Bigelow Aerospace document.
 


Private space station costs
 
"The key to unlocking the potential of such opportunities is affordability," the company observes, and is rolling out a description of costs “that represent a sea change from historic aerospace pricing."
 
That pricing is being categorized as:
 • Astronaut Flight Costs: $26.25 - $36.75 million for a 60-day stay, depending on taxi selected.
• Lease Block Cost: $25 million for exclusive use of and control over 110 cubic meters of volume for a two-month period.
• Naming Rights: Full Alpha Station yearly for $25 million; half of Alpha Station (one BA 330 module) yearly for $12.5 million.
 
Customer base for space
 
Bigelow Aerospace would be able to transport an astronaut to Alpha Station for $26.25 million for countries, companies or even visiting individuals that wish to utilize SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule. Using Boeing’s CST-100 capsule and the Atlas 5 rocket, astronauts can be launched to Alpha Station for $36.75 million per seat, company officials said.
 
For clients that wish to enjoy exclusive access to and control over their own on-orbit volume and facilities, Bigelow Aerospace customers can lease a third of a BA 330 habitat (roughly 110 cubic meters, equal to an entire International Space Station module) for a period of 60 days for $25 million.
 
"Whether the customer is NASA, international clientele, corporations or even wealthy individuals, Bigelow Aerospace stands ready to leverage its robust, affordable technology to implement exceptional human spaceflight missions," the Bigelow Aerospace document concludes.

http://news.yahoo.com/alpha-station-private-inflatable-space-outpost-envisioned-185205459.html

[Green1]

I read a white paper on those Bigelow modules somewhere I can not remember where.

The way those things are made, you are actually much safer in them than the solid modules. The walls of the balloon absorb bullets and can reseal themselves numerous times unlike the leak that happened on MIr where a hole popped up they could not find. Incredibly tough space age stuff.

No beachball here.