Who We Are
Entrepreneur Robert T. Bigelow is the Founder and President of Bigelow Aerospace, LLC. Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, Bigelow Aerospace is a
general contracting, research and development company that concentrates on achieving economic breakthroughs in the costs associated with the design, development,
and construction of habitable space structures for private enterprise and government use. Since 1999, Mr. Bigelow has personally provided all financial support
totaling over $350 million to date. In addition, Mr. Bigelow provides the daily strategic leadership at Bigelow Aerospace in its design, development, and testing
of expandable habitat architectures where Bigelow Aerospace employs approximately 150 employees at its Las Vegas facility. Mr. Bigelow has successfully launched
two subscale spacecraft called Genesis I & II into orbit as well as the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM), which is attached to the Tranquility module of
the International Space Station. Moreover, Mr. Bigelow serves as the program manager of the B330 spacecraft – Bigelow Aerospace’s main habitation system for LEO
and beyond LEO destinations.
Robert Bigelow is an experienced general contractor, designer, developer, financier, buyer and manager of many large real estate projects in the US. Mr. Bigelow
holds the exclusive licensing rights to commercialize expandable habitat technology originally conceived but abandoned by NASA in the 1990’s. Over the last seventeen
years, Mr. Bigelow has earned over twenty patents, launched three prototype spacecraft, partnered with NASA on several contracts, built the necessary facilities to
design and fabricate expandable habitat technology, and has advocated for a sustainable commercial space economy.
Timeline
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Company Founded - FEB, 1999
Robert Bigelow founded Bigelow Aerospace to continue work on expandable habitats. The company’s mission is to provide safe and low-cost commercial space platforms for low Earth orbit, the moon and beyond. -
NASA TransHab Program Cancelled - 2000
NASA is the godfather of expandable habitat technology. Spurred by NASA’s mission to explore Mars, NASA initiated the TransHab program to pursue the development of expandable habitat technology. Although the technology showed promise, the program was canceled due to lack of funding. -
HQ Development Begins - 2001
Bigelow Aerospace sits on over 50 acres in North Las Vegas, NV. -
Bigelow Secured License for Expandable Technology from NASA - SEP, 2003
Bigelow Aerospace purchased a patent license from NASA for expandable space habitat technology. For over a decade, the Bigelow team has evolved expandable technology and has enhanced the performance and reliability of the architecture. -
Genesis I Launch - JUL, 2006
The launch of Genesis I at the ISC Kosmotras Space and Missile Complex in Russia, marked the first launch for Bigelow Aerospace. The mission successfully validated the expansion, pressurization and safe operation of an expandable spacecraft. -
Genesis II Launch - JUN, 2007
The launch and operation of a second expandable spacecraft was also a success. Upon the completion of the Genesis program, Bigelow Aerospace began its work on human-rated habitats. -
BEAM Launch - APR, 2016
After a historic launch for Bigelow Aerospace and SpaceX, the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) became the first expandable module to reach the International Space Station. -
NASA Awards BEAM a Mission Extension - Dec. 4, 2017
NASA awards BEAM a longer time on the ISS, and integrates the module into an operational asset of Station. BEAM is currently holding over 1,000 pounds of cargo including the weathered LEE (Latched End Effector). BEAM continues to perform nominally, and above expectations.