The proposed Thunderbird Station was announced overnight in Cape Canaveral and centres on a large inflatable habitat that delivers far more internal volume per launch than traditional rigid space station modules.
Max Space also confirmed its first in-orbit demonstration mission, known as Mission Evolution, is scheduled to launch on a SpaceX rideshare flight in early 2027. The mission will test the deployment and performance of the company’s expandable habitat technology in space.
According to the company, Thunderbird Station is designed to support four or more crew continuously and provide around 350 cubic metres of pressurised volume, more than three times the size of a standard International Space Station module.
The habitat would launch on a single Falcon 9 rocket in a compact form before expanding up to 20 times its launch volume once in orbit, without the need for on-orbit assembly.
The interior features a reconfigurable, three-dimensional architecture that allows astronauts to adapt the space for research, manufacturing or living as mission needs change. Max Space said the design was developed in collaboration with experienced astronauts to better exploit microgravity, rather than relying on Earth-style floor-and-wall layouts.
Max Space co-founder and chief executive Saleem Miyan said the station represented a fundamental shift in how space habitats are conceived, saying, “Thunderbird Station is not an incremental step – it’s a complete redesign of what space stations for Earth orbit, the moon and Mars can be.”
Thunderbird Station is expected to initially include more than 60 payload lockers, with capacity to add many more racks to support government and commercial missions, including industrial-scale in-space manufacturing.
The structure has been designed with safety margins exceeding NASA’s requirements for traditional metallic modules while aiming to reduce operational complexity and costs across civil, defence and commercial applications.
“We’re building space real estate that reflects how people will actually live and work in space this decade and beyond,” Miyan added.
Veteran NASA astronaut Nicole Stott, who has logged more than 100 days in space and has been appointed Max Space’s lead astronaut, said the interior was the first she had seen truly designed for microgravity.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen an interior designed for space rather than Earth,” she said, noting her operational experience had helped guide the station’s layout and adaptability for future missions.
The upcoming Mission Evolution flight will focus on validating the on-orbit deployment of the expandable module and testing its micrometeoroid protection systems. Max Space said the flight unit is already in production following years of ground testing.
The company also announced the appointment of Dr Kartik Sheth, a former senior NASA scientist and White House science policy official, to its advisory team.
Sheth previously oversaw flagship programs including the James Webb Space Telescope and brings experience aligning large-scale space projects with government and commercial priorities.
Max Space argued its approach is well timed, with the International Space Station approaching the end of its operational life and many proposed commercial replacements relying on expensive rigid modules with limited internal volume.
By contrast, the company said its expandable habitats can be produced faster, launched more cheaply, and scaled for long-duration missions beyond Earth orbit.
Founded by Saleem Miyan, Aaron Kemmer and Maxim de Jong, Max Space is positioning Thunderbird Station as part of a broader push to enable permanent human presence beyond Earth while supporting the growth of the global space economy.