Safe, Sustainable, Economic: Indian Startup Plans India's First Inflatable Space 'Balloon' Habitat AntarikshHAB
An IISc-incubated startup plans to launch India’s first inflatable space habitat in July 2026 to enable cost-efficient, scalable orbital habitation.
By Anubha Jain
Published : February 12, 2026 at 2:08 PM IST
Bengaluru: Space habitation is opening new frontiers for scientific discoveries and economic growth. In this direction, Akashalabdhi, a startup incubated at IISc, is set to launch AntarikshHAB, India’s first scaled-down inflatable space habitat (ISH) in July 2026. The initiative aims to develop advanced space systems, next-generation materials, and high-performance electronics to enable secure, sustainable, scalable, and cost-efficient orbital habitation.
The initial AntarikshHAB module will offer 70 cubic metres of habitable volume. Its modular architecture allows in-orbit assembly and expansion, with the final operational configuration planned to grow to approximately 500 cubic metres, roughly half the size of a football stadium. While conventional habitats such as the International Space Station (ISS) support only 6-7 people, Akashalabdhi habitats can accommodate 30–35 people working simultaneously within a single orbital facility.
“This first launch will deploy an inflatable habitat carrying six multi-use payloads. This mission will validate both our core technology and our commercial use cases. We will also demonstrate controlled re-entry and recovery of the habitat and payloads, proving our end-to-end space ecosystem approach. This launch is a critical milestone for Akashalabdhi,” stated Siddharth Jena, a mechanical engineer, Founder & CEO, Akashalabdhi Space.
“Our core vision is to make humanity a multiplanetary species. Space offers solutions to Earth’s resource and energy challenges. By moving heavy industry to the Moon, Mars, or orbit, we can reduce pollution, preserve Earth’s environment, and make it more habitable. Human exploration and autonomous robotics must advance together to achieve this vision,” he added.
AntarikshHAB: Design, Sustainability, Safety
The inflatable space habitat (ISH) AntarikshHAB is said to be modular, expandable, and single-launch scalable, offering a more sustainable approach to long-term orbital habitation. It is a soft, inflatable structure which significantly reduces the risk of space debris. Unlike metallic structures, it does not generate high-speed metal fragments upon impact.
Notably, metallic debris can trigger a chain reaction, producing multiple fragments ranging from 2 mm to 5 cm that travel at nearly 7 km per second (about 27,000 kmph), posing serious threats to other space assets. In inflatable structures, if debris impacts, the habitat produces only polymer- or fabric-based fragments.
With AntarikshHAB, the startup showcases the potential to contribute to growing space economy by offering in-orbit manufacturing and zero-gravity production of specialised components, preparatory operations for lunar and asteroid resource extraction, and providing end-to-end capability, including inflatable re-entry module, heat shield, and a qualified MMOD (micrometeoroid and orbital debris) protection layer.
It is also developing solar arrays for gigawatt-scale power generation for data centres and inflatable rovers for efficient lunar and Mars exploration. These verticals position Akashalabdhi to enter and contribute to major space programs.
International Collaborations, Technology Readiness, and Testing
AntarikshHAB is designed to launch in a compact form and inflate once in orbit. It includes orbital deployment, controlled de-orbit, and atmospheric re-entry. Key testing for the upcoming July mission has been conducted in Switzerland through partnerships with the European Space Agency (ESA) and other European organisations. Additional testing in an underground laboratory operated by Amberg Group provides a controlled environment with natural rock overburden, enabling realistic studies of radiation shielding, structural integrity, isolation effects, and long-duration habitat performance—conditions difficult to replicate in surface facilities.
Partnerships with ESA and European collaborators are crucial for advancing Akashalabdhi's technology and enhancing its global credibility. Jena said, “Space exploration is fundamentally a human endeavour that requires global collaboration. Just as ocean exploration began as a collective effort, space development must also start with international partnerships before becoming geopolitically competitive."
"As a startup, we cannot wait 10–15 years for regional markets to mature—speed is critical for survival. Partnering globally, especially with agencies that have complementary expertise, helps us reach the market faster, validate our technology, and strengthen our commercial model. These partnerships also benefit collaborators by giving them access to innovative human spaceflight infrastructure and new in-orbit capabilities.”
To advance the system to Technology Readiness Level 6 (TRL-6), a comprehensive test campaign was conducted, including pressure and leak-before-burst testing of multi-layer flexible structures, thermal cycling, accelerated material ageing, micrometeoroid and orbital debris impact testing, and repeated validation of restraint and inflation mechanisms. Repeated deployment trials have also been carried out to assess the reliability of restraint and inflation mechanisms. Designed with dual-use capability, the habitats are supposed to provide pristine microgravity environments for advanced experimentation.
Why Inflatable Structures Make Sense
Talking to ETV Bharat, Siddharth Jena highlighted the importance of his company's inflatable structures. He said, “India has consistently achieved more with fewer resources. ISRO’s long-standing success with launch vehicles like PSLV and GSLV, along with strong capabilities in electronics, propulsion, and structural research from institutions like IIT Roorkee and IIT Delhi, reflects this strength. However, the key challenge in advancing Indian human spaceflight is not technology but constraints—particularly geography and launch economics. Large, rigid space structures weigh hundreds of tons, making launch costs extremely high.”
This led to the focus on inflatable space structures—an idea explored since the 1970s but limited by material capabilities at the time. Earlier, suitable materials for radiation shielding and protection against space debris and micrometeoroids were unavailable. Siddharth and his team addressed this gap by first developing advanced materials and then refining the structural design. “By solving both material and structural challenges, ISH offers a practical path to overcoming India’s constraints and enabling sustainable human spaceflight,” noted Jena.
Discussing the cost effectiveness and mission’s flexibility, Jena noted that inflatable space habitats significantly reduce launch costs because they are far lighter and can be compactly packed into standard rocket fairings, making them launch-vehicle independent. A large module can be compressed into a very small volume and compact structure, enabling single-launch deployment without complex in-orbit assembly.
Jena explained that Akashalabdhi's ISHs are like advanced “balloons” in space—radiation-shielded, debris-protected, and fully equipped for humans to live and work. Since they are inflatable, the launch weight is drastically reduced—up to 700 times lighter than conventional structures. He said, "Our first launch, 70 cubic metres module, weighs just 130 kg, instead of 80–90 tons, creating considerable launch cost reduction in comparison to conventional structures."
Jena further added that ISH also enables sovereign autonomy in space. Unlike conventional ISS costing $160–170 billion, ISH can be deployed for $50–70 million, allowing any nation to maintain its own presence without dependence on major powers.
"ISHs are essential for deep-space settlements on the Moon and Mars, where launch costs skyrocket," he said. "They provide scalable, modular, lightweight, and cost-efficient infrastructure for large-scale research, manufacturing, and healthcare applications in space, which conventional hard structures cannot support efficiently."
ISH also eliminates the need for multiple launches and risky spacewalks, reducing both cost and safety concerns. Inflatable habitats enable single-launch deployment. Once deployed, they provide much larger usable volume compared to traditional rigid structures of similar weight, supporting more crew and activities.
Inflatables also offer longer life cycles, better resistance to space debris and environmental effects, easier reentry, and simpler maintenance or reuse—either in space or after return—making them a more efficient and scalable alternative to conventional space structures. Hence, multi-use capability and versatility come with ISHs.
Industry and Policy Landscape
On policy gaps and regulation for private space habitats, Jena noted that while human spaceflight standards are well established in the West, India is still in a maturing phase, and the ecosystem is still developing.
He emphasised that progress must initially be driven by industry, with companies like Akashalabdhi and others conducting multiple missions to validate technologies and establish reliable qualification standards and protocols. These industry-led benchmarks can then support the government in framing effective regulations for human spaceflight and space commerce.
Highlighting that human safety remains the highest priority, he said that while startups can address parts of the challenge—such as orbital infrastructure and habitat structures—the government must lead on astronaut programs, human physiology, and the human space flight ecosystem. "A strong government–private partnership can significantly strengthen India’s role in the global space economy," he added.
Technical and Strategic Challenges in Bringing the Concept to Launch Readiness
Jena highlighted that the biggest technical challenge for Akashalabdhi was developing the right materials. While the structural design was already solved during their IIT Roorkee research, material expertise required guidance by Professor SS Banerjee and collaboration with IIT Delhi’s materials science department.
Testing and validation posed another challenge due to tight test windows. The team addressed this through partnerships with iDEX, DRDO laboratories, the Terminal Ballistics Lab in Chandigarh, and IISc, combining academic and defence resources. Integrating avionics into a soft, inflatable module was also a new skill. The team innovated novel attachment and mounting systems—now patented—to securely integrate satellite-grade systems into inflatable habitats.
By solving these technical and strategic challenges, Akashalabdhi achieved space-qualified technology. Jena said, “We had the expertise of ISRO and IISc to help us navigate through the strategic challenges.”
As nations compete to define the future of orbital infrastructure, innovations like inflatable habitats could determine who builds the next generation of human settlements in space. For India, AntarikshHAB may represent not just a technological milestone, but the beginning of a new chapter in sovereign space capability.
