SEATTLE — Voyager Space is joining forces with Airbus Defence and Space on a three way partnership for the event of the Starlab business space station.
The businesses announced Aug. 2 the creation of a three way partnership, also called Starlab, that might be accountable for the event and operation of the station. The three way partnership builds upon an agreement announced in January where Voyager chosen Airbus to offer technical support for the proposed station.
“This transatlantic enterprise with footprints on either side of the ocean aligns the interests of each ourselves and Voyager and our respective space agencies,” said Jean-Marc Nasr, head of space systems at Airbus, in a press release. “Together our teams are focused on creating an unmatched space destination each technologically and as a business operation.”
The three way partnership is an effort to create a long-term partnership between the businesses for Starlab. “We’ve got been working thoroughly together as partners,” said Matthew Kuta, president of Voyager Space, in an interview. “It’s very necessary within the business world to have good long-term partnerships and fewer of a vendor transactional relationship, so we had discussions about forming the three way partnership together.”
Kuta declined to debate financial details of the partnership, including the share of the three way partnership held by each company. Nonetheless, he noted that the three way partnership might be U.S.-led, meaning that at the least 51% of the corporate might be owned by U.S. entities like Voyager Space.
Having a European company as a part of the three way partnership, though, could make it easier for European governments and organizations, just like the European Space Agency, participate on Starlab. European officials have expressed hesitance about paying American corporations for flying European astronauts, reasonably than the barter system used for International Space Station operations among the many partner nations.
“We’ve got great relationships with ESA, but clearly Airbus a lot better relationships,” Kuta said. “It allows us to work out how we are able to satisfy those customer demands more directly and successfully.”
He added that he couldn’t speak for ESA’s plans after the retirement of the station, but since that agency has previously ruled out flying its astronauts on China’s Tiangong space station, its only option might be using business stations like Starlab. “By partnering with Airbus, we’ll be in an excellent position to assist ESA work out what works for them.”
Voyager Space, through Nanoracks, received a $160 million Space Act Agreement from NASA in December 2021 to support initial design work on Starlab, one in all three such awards NASA issued through its Business LEO Destinations initiative. The Starlab team recently accomplished a system requirements review for the station with NASA, which Kuta said went well.
The main target of Starlab might be on research applications, reasonably than tourism. The station is designed to suit on a single launch, outfitted on the bottom with all of the research equipment needed for its customers. “All of the things that ISS does is what we’re focused on having the ability to proceed, but with more modern equipment, technologies and capabilities.”
That research interest is coming from each government agencies and corporations, particularly within the pharmaceutical sector. The businesses are ways to permit customers to begin work on facilities they operate on the ISS today, just like the Airbus Bartolomeo external payload facility and Nanoracks Bishop airlock, then shift that work to Starlab.