What is “MicroAge” Experiment?

December 21, 2021

An experiment called “MicroAge” is set to be launched to International Space Station on SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.

Highlights

MicroAge Experiment will help people in living a longer and healthier life.
As the part of this experiment, human cells will be launched to space.
Experiment will help in understanding what happens to the human cells and why.
Experiment will be launched to space from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.

How cells will be sent to space?

Human cells have been put into small 3D holders. These cells will be electrically stimulated, once they reach to space. The electrical stimulation will help in inducing contractions in muscle tissue. This experiment will help scientists in examining the cells closely.

Who will analyse these cells?

These cells will be analysed by Researchers from University of Liverpool. Research will be funded by the UK Space Agency. UK Space Agency has provided £1.2 million in funds to conduct the experiment.

What led to this experiment?

It is known for a long time that astronauts in space tend to lose muscle rapidly. So, people have speculated if that is an accelerated ageing phenomenon. Astronauts at the space station had an analogous problem. Each astronaut on space station exercises at lease 2.5 hours each day. Despite this fact, they lose a significant amount of muscle. They find it difficult to walk for a while, after they return back to earth. Thus, this experiment will be conducted to study the ageing phenomenon.