Sierra Space Spaceplane and Space Stations

Sierra Space will soon launch the Dream Chaser, a reusable lifting-body spaceplane and inflatable space stations.

The cargo Dream Chaser is designed to resupply the International Space Station with both pressurized and unpressurized cargo. It is intended to launch vertically on the Vulcan Centaur rocket and autonomously land horizontally on conventional runways. A proposed version to be operated by ESA would launch on an Arianespace vehicle.

In November 2021, Sierra Nevada Corporation reported that it received a $1.4 billion investment in Series A funding, which it will use to develop a crewed version of Dream Chaser and fly astronauts by 2025. Sierra Space has about 2000 employees.

The cargo version of the SNC Dream Chaser is called the Dream Chaser Cargo System (DCCS) and after development is completed, will fly resupply flights to the ISS under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services-2 program. Featuring an expendable cargo module mounting solar panels, the spacecraft will be capable of returning 1,750 kg (3,860 lb) to Earth while undergoing maximum re-entry forces of 1.5G.

To meet CRS-2 guidelines, the cargo Dream Chaser will have folding wings and fit within a 5 m diameter payload fairing, in contrast to the Crewed Dream Chaser, which is intended to launch without a fairing. An expendable cargo module will launch attached to the back of the spacecraft, expanding the cargo uplift capacity and supporting the disposal of up to 3,250 kg (7,170 lb) of trash. Total uplift is planned for 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) pressurized and 500 kg (1,100 lb) unpressurized, with a downlift of 1,750 kg (3,860 lb) contained within the spaceplane. The expendable cargo module is called Shooting Star.

The first cargo launch was delayed and is scheduled for April 2024.

Products from Sierra Space’s Destinations organization include the Orbital Reef space station (in partnership with Blue Origin) and the LIFE (Large Integrated Flexible Environment) habitat.

LIFE (Large Integrated Flexible Environment or Large Inflatable Fabric Environment) is an inflatable space habitat currently being developed by Sierra Space. The proposed Orbital Reef commercial space station includes multiple LIFE habitats in its design. Lunar Surface Habitat is an inflatable habitat proposed by NASA for Artemis program.

LIFE launches on a conventional rocket and inflates on orbit. The first product in the roadmap, LIFE 1.0, is a large, three-story structure that is 27 feet in diameter. It can comfortably sleep four astronauts, with additional room for science experiments, exercise equipment, a medical center and Astro Garden® system, which can grow fresh produce for astronauts on long-duration space missions.

Through NASA’s NextSTEP project, Sierra Space completed its successful test in July 2022, which a maximum burst pressure rate of 192 psi. It then completed its second sub-scale ultimate burst pressure test on November 15, 2022 that achieved a 204 psi burst pressure rate. The safety requirement is 182.4 psi. The full-scale LIFE pressure tests will begin in 2023, which will be the passing test for the habitat’s primary structure to support human use in space.[[