By 
September 1st, 2024
Image credit: SpinSat/NASA Ames Research Center
The impact on the human body from lengthy stints of space travel has put researchers in a spin for decades.
Remaining largely unknown are the effects of deep space radiation and reduced gravity on biological systems.
It’s high-time for “SpinSat” – an innovative platform to rev up some answers and fill in knowledge gaps.
Image credit: SpinSat/NASA Ames Research Center
Survive and thrive
For instance, what are the mechanisms by which organisms sense and respond to physical properties of surroundings, and to applied mechanical forces including gravitational force?
How does the space environment alter interactions between organisms?
What are the important multi-generational effects of the space environment on growth, development, and reproduction?
How does the space environment influence biological mechanisms required for organisms to survive the transitions to and from space, and thrive while off Earth?
Hardware and payloads
Specialists at NASA’s Ames Research Center are moving forward on shaping SpinSat development and science goals.
Image credit: SpinSat/NASA Ames Research Center
A spacecraft platform has been blueprinted, optimized for hosting biological payloads to appraise long-duration exposure to the low-dose deep-space radiation environment under conditions of reduced (artificial) gravitation relevant to Earth’s Moon and Mars.
The SpinSat team is seeking input for requirements of potential payloads to enable a spacecraft design that meets the needs of as many researchers as possible.
NASA is also turning to hardware providers, looking for payload systems to accommodate an array of experiments that could be part of the SpinSat capability suite.
Artemis explorers at the Moon.
Image credit: NASA
Plug-n-Play
Drawing from the on-going and growing CubeSat technology world, SpinSat is viewed as a “Plug-n-Play” space platform. It would offer controlled gravity levels from micro-g to Earth g (as a control) and higher. Modification of payload radiation environments via SpinSat would mimic those of the Moon and Mars.
SpinSat is keyed to providing low-cost, reliable, and frequent access to deep space for a wide variety of experiments. The platform design could host a range of experiments from human tissues to microorganisms and “organoids” — small, simplified, 3D copies of organs created outside of a living body – as well as plants, and chemical and physical systems.
Image credit: NASA
Investigation focus areas include the central nervous system, cancer, bone and muscle health to wound healing, pharmacologics, and food sources.
Given a go, SpinSat could be lofted on a variety of launch vehicles into almost any orbit.
For more information on SpinSat, go to:
Posted in Space News
