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Bigelow Aerospace’s Genesis 1 module activated its compressed air tanks to inflate the skin as planned, and is now sending back low-res photos to earth.
The concept of an inflatable craft was conceived by Nasa in the 60s, and is much cheaper than standard spaceships as it takes up less room on the launch vehicle.
The only inhabitants of the 15ft by 8ft module are cockroaches, but the company is planning two more missions over the next year and believes a full-sized version for humans could be ready by 2010.
maybe they will be sending up RAID
Fears that a giant bouncy castle might be a little prone to being punctured by space debris are apparently unfounded – the walls contain Kevlar, which is used in bullet proof vests, and the internal temperature is said to be a pleasant 26 degrees.
Founder Robert Bigelow is also trying to stoke up competition by launching ‘America’s Space Prize’, which is offering $50 million to any US company that can create a craft that can take 5 people into space. Looks like long weekends in space might be on the cards soon.
Stuff Mag
