Vast Space, an aerospace startup founded by former cryptocurrency mogul Jed McCaleb, has hired SpaceX to launch two private astronaut missions to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of its plans to commercialize Earth orbit.
The agreement, announced on Thursday (19), is conditional on Vast winning a bid to participate in a NASA program that promotes the sending of private astronauts to the orbiting research laboratory. Since 2019, NASA has allowed companies to send civilian crews to the ISS, helping these companies better understand the costs and challenges of operating space stations.
Vast is among several companies competing to usher in a future in which humans live and work on commercial space stations.
If chosen, Vast would use SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule to launch the fifth and sixth of these NASA-enabled missions, according to Vast.
So far, Vast rival Axiom Space has launched three private astronaut missions to the ISS on SpaceX Dragon flights, with plans to fly a fourth in 2025.
NASA’s selection would mark a significant partnership with the space agency as Vast competes with companies like Axiom and Jeff Bezos-backed Blue Origin to develop a successor to the International Space Station — which is set to be retired in 2030.
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In October, Vast revealed plans for an orbital hub called Haven-2, a specialized low-Earth orbit laboratory that will compete with other projects as NASA chooses finalists for successors to the ISS in 2026.
Thursday’s announcement is the latest in a series of partnerships Vast has with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which will also launch Vast’s first commercial space station, called Haven-1, no earlier than August 2025.
SpaceX and Vast also plan to launch a team to visit Haven-1 once the spacecraft is in orbit. In addition, Haven-1 will have an internet connection enabled by Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service.
