LIFE habitat
In Development
Sierra Space
Overview
Large Integrated Flexible Environment, an inflatable softgoods habitat that launches packed in a 5 m fairing and inflates on orbit to a three-story, ~285 m3 pressurized volume - about one-third of the ISS in a single launch. Built from high-strength webbings and fabric with an air barrier, restraint layer, and MMOD/MLI blanket. Full-scale ultimate burst-pressure tests at NASA Marshall in 2023-2024 are the main structural qualification evidence. LIFE is Sierra's habitation contribution to Orbital Reef and is also offered as a standalone module family (including smaller LIFE 10 configurations).
Full-scale burst tests complete. A standalone late-2026 pathfinder launch could not be re-confirmed as of September 2026.