Vast has signed an agreement with NASA to conduct technical tests of the Haven-1 orbital station. It is planned to be launched next year.
Vast was founded in 2021. Despite its youth, the company has very ambitious plans, intending to launch the first ever private orbital station Haven-1. The main advantage of its application is its relative simplicity. While other companies are designing complex multi-modular orbital stations, Haven-1 will consist of just one 14-ton compartment with an internal volume of 80 m3, not designed for permanent human presence. The station will rely on the Crew Dragon spacecraft’s life support system and will be able to sustain four astronauts for 30 days.
Initially, the launch of the station was announced for the second half of 2025. However, after conducting structural tests of the qualification model of the Haven-1 design, the company revised the timeline. According to the company’s latest statements, the station will not be launched until May 2026 at the earliest.
NASA will provide technical support for the project. On April 3, VAST said it signed an agreement with NASA to test Haven-1 at the Neil Armstrong Test Facility. It has equipment for thermovacuum, acoustic, vibration and other tests. Testing of Haven-1 is scheduled to begin in early 2026 to make sure the station can withstand launch and space conditions.
Once Haven-1 is in orbit, VAST plans to send up to four visitation missions to it. The experience gained in the construction and operation of the station will be used in the creation of a much larger multi-module station Haven-2. VAST intends to propose its design to NASA for the CLD (Commercial Low Earth Orbit Destinations) program, which aims to promote the development of private stations to replace the ISS.
Vast is not participating in the current Phase 1 of the CLD program, under which NASA is supporting Axiom Space, Blue Origin and Starlab Space in developing concepts for their space stations. NASA plans to release a draft application for the second phase of the CLD program in the summer of 2025, with a final version in the autumn. Phase 2 will be open to all companies, not just those in Phase 1. NASA plans to award funds for CLD Phase II in the summer of 2026.
According to Spacenews
