Race to replace International Space Station heats up
Vast announced its Haven-1 station will launch in early 2027, becoming the first commercial space station and beating competitors like Axiom Space and Blue Origin. The company plans crewed missions starting next year, with French astronaut Arnaud Prost joining the inaugural flight aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.
Vast, a US aerospace company founded in 2021 by cryptocurrency billionaire Jed McCaleb, announced plans to launch its Haven-1 station in early 2027, marking the first commercial space station in history. The mission will include French astronaut Arnaud Prost, who will conduct tests ahead of scientific experiments, similar to those on the International Space Station (ISS). Haven-1 will feature a single module and host four two-week missions over three years, with costs significantly lower than the ISS’s modules. The company aims to expand with Haven-2, eventually deploying nine modules gradually to reduce costs by five to ten times compared to ISS components. By 2030, Vast plans to have four modules in orbit, supporting six-month missions. Vast will use SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets and Dragon 2 capsule for both Haven-1 and a separate mission to send French astronaut Thomas Pesquet to the ISS next year. Vast claims to be two years ahead of rivals like Axiom Space and Blue Origin, citing NASA contracts. The company also announced plans to open its European headquarters in Paris. CEO Max Haot emphasized SpaceX’s role in reducing dependence on Russia, calling its reusable rocket model ‘the future of space.’ The ISS, continuously inhabited since 1998, is set for deorbiting in 2030, prompting a shift toward commercial alternatives. Despite geopolitical tensions, the US and Europe continue collaborating with Russia on ISS operations while pursuing independent space initiatives.
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