---
title: "NASA Paying Blue Origin $130 Million for New Space Station, Even After Its Ugly Lawsuit"
description: "Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin was one of three aeronautics companies chosen to design new “commercial destinations” in space to replace the ISS."
date: "2021-12-03"
modified: "2021-12-03"
authors:
  - name: "Tony Ho Tran"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/ttran"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-blue-origin-space-station"
categories:
  - "Blue Origin"
  - "NASA"
  - "Space"
tags:
  - "blue origin"
  - "international space station"
  - "NASA"
  - "the digest"
---

# NASA Paying Blue Origin $130 Million for New Space Station, Even After Its Ugly Lawsuit

![Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin was one of three aeronautics companies chosen to design new “commercial destinations” in space to replace the ISS.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/nasa-blue-origin-two-companies-design-iss-replacements2.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Blue Origin\</em\>*

## Big Fat Contracts

NASA has awarded a [company that sued it](<https://futurism.com/court-documents-blue-origin-nasa>) a multi-million dollar contract to design a new space station.

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin was one of three aeronautics companies chosen to design new "commercial destinations" in space, according to [a NASA press release](<https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-companies-to-develop-commercial-destinations-in-space>). The total amount awarded for the contracts is $415.6 million.

The pile of money will be split fairly evenly amongst the three with Blue Origin receiving $130 million, Nanoracks receiving $160 million, and Northrop Grumman Systems receiving $125.6 million.

"With commercial companies now providing transportation to low-Earth orbit in place, we are partnering with US companies to develop the space destinations where people can visit, live, and work, enabling NASA to continue forging a path in space for the benefit of humanity while fostering commercial activity in space," agency chief Bill Nelson said in the release.

## ISS Replacement

The contracts are a part of NASA’s plan to replace the aging International Space Station (ISS) with a commercial replacement.

A [recent audit by the agency](<https://www.scribd.com/document/543603446/NASA-s-Management-of-the-International-Space-Station-and-Efforts-to-Commercialize-Low-Earth-Orbit>) discovered that the orbital outpost is practically falling apart. In fact, the situation is so bad that NASA is exploring an "earlier-than-projected obsolescence" for some parts of the ISS, meaning it would [need to be retired](<https://futurism.com/nasa-trying-kill-international-space-station>) by 2030.

The agency now hopes to get a new commercial station in orbit and operational by 2028. However, the audit notes that due to a tight timeline, getting a new station into orbit might not be feasible until after 2030. That means there *could* be a weird window of time where NASA just doesn’t have a human presence in space.

However, Blue Origin is still aiming to launch its [Orbital Reef](<https://futurism.com/blue-origin-space-station-orbital-reef>) into space by 2030 — that is, if it can avoid getting into [legal drama](<https://futurism.com/federal-judge-shoots-down-blue-origin-lawsuit-against-nasa>) along the way.

**READ MORE:** [NASA Selects Companies to Develop Commercial Destinations in Space](<https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-companies-to-develop-commercial-destinations-in-space>) \[NASA\]

**More on Blue Origin:** [*Newly Released Court Documents Obliterate Blue Origin’s Lawsuit Against NASA*](<https://futurism.com/court-documents-blue-origin-nasa>)

## Author
Tony Tran is a former reporter for Futurism, and now an editor at the Daily Beast. His work has been seen in Playboy, HuffPost, Narratively, and wherever else fine writing is published. He lives in Chicago where he frequently plans tabletop gaming sessions for his friends.