Bigelow Aerospace
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🏢 Organization
Contents 6
| Type | Organization |
|---|---|
| On the Timeline | 5 events, 1991–2019 |
Bigelow Aerospace was an American space technology company in North Las Vegas, Nevada, founded in 1998 by hotel entrepreneur Robert Bigelow to build expandable space habitats. It flew two test modules and an experimental room attached to the International Space Station, and through a subsidiary ran the Pentagon-funded AAWSAP study of unexplained aerial phenomena. It ceased operations in 2020.[1][2]
Founding
Bigelow funded the company largely from the profits of his Budget Suites of America hotel chain. In 2000 he licensed NASA's inflatable-module technology after Congress cancelled NASA's TransHab project. By 2013 he had invested about $250 million.[1]
Spacecraft
- Genesis I and II: test modules launched on Russian Dnepr rockets on 12 July 2006 and 28 June 2007. Both stayed in orbit for many years.[1][3]
- BEAM: in December 2012 NASA awarded Bigelow a $17.8 million contract for the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module. It was launched on 8 April 2016, attached to the International Space Station on 16 April and inflated on 28 May 2016. Bigelow transferred ownership to NASA in December 2021.[1]
- B330: a planned full-size habitat of about 330 cubic metres, intended to launch around 2021, which was cancelled in 2020.[1]
UFO research
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Robert Bigelow has long funded research into UFOs and other anomalies, earlier through the National Institute for Discovery Science. In 2008 a Bigelow subsidiary, Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies (BAASS), won the Defense Intelligence Agency contract for the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program (AAWSAP), which studied anomalous phenomena and also investigated Skinwalker Ranch, owned by Bigelow at the time.[2]
Decline and end
The company laid off about 40 of its 90 employees in 2011 and more staff in 2016. In March 2020 it laid off all 88 remaining employees, citing the COVID-19 pandemic, and has since been dormant. In 2021 it sued NASA for $1.05 million over work on BEAM.[1][4]
On the UAP Timeline
- Roper Organization abduction survey (1991) (22 May 1991) — Vallée says Liechtenstein's prince funded a study of alien abduction claims through Robert Bigelow.
- Bigelow's expectation of a UFO announcement (1998) (11 January 1998) — Bigelow tells Vallée he feels a dramatic UAP development is coming soon.
- Advanced Deep Space Transport group (2001) — A deep-space propulsion study group examines exotic propulsion.
- Contractor speculation dinner (2004) (28 March 2004) — Vallée's circle speculates about which contractors handle real UAP projects.
- TTSA technical collaborations (2019) (8 August 2019) — To The Stars announces technical collaborations with aerospace companies.
References
- Bigelow Aerospace — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- "Genesis 1 launch", Space.com (12 Jul 2006) · space.com · archived copy
- "Bigelow Aerospace lays off entire workforce", SpaceNews (2020) · spacenews.com · archived copy
This page was last edited on 29 October 2026. Articles are written in our own words from the sources listed under References; disputed claims are attributed to the people who made them.
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