The German Aerospace Center commits to at least four years of research aboard the Starlab space station.
BERLIN – June 10, 2026 – The German Aerospace Center (DLR) and Starlab Space LLC have signed an agreement securing a minimum payload capacity of 10 mid-deck locker equivalents (MDLE) on the Starlab Space Station for at least the first four years of its operation.
Under this agreement, payload specialists at DLR and Starlab Space will now jointly develop the details of the payloads, facilities and services provided by DLR for use on the Starlab Space Station with the intention to have first payloads ready for operations in time for the station’s launch at the turn of the decade.
“DLR’s decision to join Starlab as a research partner is a strong signal of where the future of space research is headed. One of Europe’s leading aerospace institutions recognizes that the next era of low-Earth orbit science will be driven by flexible, commercially operated platforms, and we’re proud that Starlab will be their home in orbit,” said Marshall Smith, CEO of Starlab. “The demand for commercial LEO research capacity is accelerating rapidly, from life sciences to materials research to Earth observation, and agreements like this one demonstrate that the global scientific community is ready to make that transition. We look forward to working hand-in-hand with DLR’s world-class payload specialists to make the most of every experiment aboard Starlab.”
In the presence of North Rhine-Westphalia’s Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Action and Energy Mona Neubaur, the agreement was signed by DLR’s Chair of the Executive Board, Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla, DLR’s Divisional Board Member for Space, Anke Pagels-Kerp, and Marshall Smith, CEO of Starlab Space, on June 10 at the International Aerospace Exhibition (ILA) in Berlin.
