Orbital & Surface Infrastructure

Privately-built and operated space stations intended to succeed the ISS as destinations in low Earth orbit — for research, manufacturing, and tourism. Axiom Station is being assembled to begin attached to the ISS before flying free.

Keeping cryogenic propellants — liquid hydrogen and oxygen — cold enough not to boil away over long missions. Cryogenic fluid management is a key enabling technology for depots and for deep-space transfer stages.

Habitats that launch compact and expand in space, giving far more volume per kilogram than rigid modules. The Genesis demonstrators and the BEAM module on the ISS have proven the concept in orbit.

A sustained human outpost on the Moon — habitats, power, and ISRU plants supporting long stays — the surface counterpart of the Gateway station, and a proving ground for the technologies of a Mars base.

An electromagnetic catapult that accelerates payloads to high speed along a track — proposed especially on the Moon, where the low gravity and airlessness would let a mass driver launch mined material into space without rockets.

An orbiting fuel station that stores propellant so spacecraft can refuel in space. A depot would let missions launch 'dry' and top up on orbit, breaking the tyranny of carrying all their propellant from the ground.

A cable anchored to the ground and reaching beyond geostationary orbit, up which vehicles would climb to space without rockets. It remains theoretical: no known material has the strength-to-weight needed to build the tether on Earth.