Skip to main content

Blue Origin wants to build a space station for ‘exotic hospitality’

Not content with 10-minute tourism rides to the edge of space, Jeff Bezos now wants to take a giant leap all of his own and build a commercial space station in low-Earth orbit.

Blue Origin, the spaceflight company founded by Amazon boss Bezos in 2000, revealed the ambitious plan at the International Astronautical Congress in Dubai on Monday, October 25.

Recommended Videos

Similar to the International Space Station (ISS), Blue Origin’s orbiting outpost, called Orbital Reef, would host astronauts from around the world and be used to conduct science experiments in microgravity conditions. But a slick video (below) released by the company suggests the station would also be used as in-space manufacturing facility and provide accommodation for space tourists as part of an “exotic hospitality” service, as Blue Origin is calling it.

Announcing Orbital Reef - Your Address in Orbit

Blue Origin isn’t taking on the task alone, with Colorado-based Sierra Space and aerospace giant Boeing, among other companies, planning to join forces to help create what’s being described as a space-based “mixed-use business park.”

Orbital Reef would be about as large as the ISS and host up to 10 people at a time. And with the ISS now 20 years old and likely to be decommissioned within the next 10 years, Blue Origin’s facility would arrive in time to replace the aging satellite, with deployment hoped for toward the end of this decade.

Commenting on the plan, John Mulholland, Boeing VP and program manager for the ISS, described Blue Origin’s plan as an exciting project as it doesn’t duplicate the exiting space station, “but rather goes a step further to fulfill a unique position in low Earth orbit where it can serve a diverse array of companies and host non-specialist crews.”

But the challenges to make Orbital Reef a reality are immense. Cost is the obvious one, with Blue Origin and Sierra Space yet to release an estimate of how many billions of dollars it will take to achieve their shared goal. Some of the funding could come from NASA, which is looking at proposals from a number of companies for an ISS replacement. But Blue Origin appears intent on moving ahead with its plan with or without help from NASA.

Also, Blue Origin is yet to perform an orbital flight, with its single-stage New Shepard rocket only going as far as the Kármán line 62 miles above Earth before returning to Earth minutes later. The company is, however, preparing the maiden test flight of New Glenn, its first orbital rocket, for some time next year. New Glenn is a heavy-lift rocket and so could be used to carry sections of Orbital Reef into orbit.

Blue Origin said it wants to provide “an end-to-end service: transportation and logistics, leased space for any purpose, assistance with system hardware development, robotic and crew-tended operations and servicing, and habitation amenities.”

It said that experienced customers would be able to “simply link up their own modules through standard interfaces,” while newbies would have access to specialist help to enable them to realize their goals.

It added: “Orbital Reef expands access, lowers the cost, and provides everything needed to help you operate your business in space. A growing commercial ecosystem in Earth orbit will unlock the potential for new discoveries, unimagined products, and new forms of entertainment, and promote a new level of interconnected global awareness.”

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Watch this surreal aurora footage captured from the space station
An aurora as seen from the space station 250 miles above Earth.

One of the highlights for astronauts who spend time aboard the International Space Station (ISS) is the chance to enjoy breathtaking aurora from some 250 miles above Earth.

The space station’s X account has just shared some stunning footage showing an aurora captured by a camera on the ISS as it traveled over Canada, from west to east.

Read more
Blue Origin’s latest rocket flight included a lunar-like experience
Blue Origin launches the New Shepard suborbital rocket on mission NS-29 in February 2025.

Blue Origin successfully performed its 29th New Shepard flight and 14th payload mission from Launch Site One in West Texas on Tuesday. While most of the recent New Shepard flights have had paying passengers aboard, this one carried science payloads rather than people.

https://x.com/blueorigin/status/1886867537771594113

Read more
See a stunning view of a eclipse in space captured by the Blue Ghost mission
Rendering of the Blue Ghost on the moon's surface.

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost mission, launched earlier this month on a mission to the moon, has captured stunning video of the Earth eclipsing the sun as seen from space. The Blue Ghost lander is currently in orbit around the Earth, adjusting its trajectory so it can head toward the moon over the next several weeks. And while it is there, it has been collecting data using its science instruments and testing out its communication system.

"5 days into our mission and we've traveled 220,000 miles while downlinking 1.4 GB of data!" Firefly announced earlier this week. "There's a long road ahead, but our #GhostRiders have already accomplished so much!"

Read more