Blue Origin Is Planning To Build Space Station Named Orbital Reef

(RTTNews) - Amazon (AMZN) founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos's space infrastructure and tourism company, is planning to make a space station next, named the Orbital Reef. Space startup, Sierra Space is going to partner with Blue Origin in the project. While the heads of the companies involved denied talking about any estimates for making such an extraordinary piece of engineering, experts believe the expense could exceed tens of billions. The two companies are expected to share the cost of the feat while Boeing is rumored to design the research module. The companies are also expecting to tie NASA in the agreement as the tenants. Presently, the most expensive piece of engineering, the International Space Station is nearing its retirement after almost 20 years in service. The Orbital Reef will also have a similar inner volume as the ISS. However, there are doubts over the project as Blue Origin is yet to manage a single orbital flight with most of its recent flights taking the tourists to the lower orbitals of the planet and then coming back. The company will have to perform multiple successful take-offs into orbit before making an attempt to launch the space station. It is also understood that Blue Origin's New Glenn will be the carrier spacecraft for the matter. New Glenn is yet to make its maiden flight out of the base and is scheduled to fly in late 2022. During the announcement for the Orbital Reef, multiple other space companies also pitched in with their ideas. Genesis, one such company is building a robotic pod that will allow the astronauts to perform spacewalks a lot easier and perform operations with the help of robotic arms. RedWire is concentrating on making a 3D printer that will be operational in space. The project is supposed to start by the end of 2022. Other companies interested in the project are Nanoracks and Axiom.