NASA expands inflatable habitat in space

<p>NASA has&nbsp;<a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2016/05/28/beam-fully-expanded-and-pressurized/" target="_blank">successfully expanded</a>&nbsp;its new inflatable habitat in space.&nbsp;</p><p>The&nbsp;<a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/2016/05/28/beam-expanded-to-full-size/" target="_blank">Bigelow Expandable Activity Module</a>, or BEAM, was attached to the International Space Station before being fully expanded and pressurized.</p><p>It took over seven hours for the habitat to expand in space and just 10 minutes to pressurize.&nbsp;</p><p>Up next for BEAM, a week of testing to check for any leaks and then another week of waiting before a NASA astronaut will enter it for the first time.&nbsp;</p><p>In all, the habitat will stay attached to the ISS for two years. During that time, astronauts will continue to test and monitor it to help improve future inflatable habitat designs.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>