Universities of Exeter and Leicester collaborate on mission to send nematode worms to the International Space Station
A crew of tiny worms will be heading on a mission to the International Space Station in 2026 that will help scientists understand how humans can travel through space safely, using a Leicester-built space pod. The experiment is based upon a concept and early development by the University of Exeter over more than 8 years
A team of scientists and engineers at Space Park Leicester, the University of Leicester's pioneering £100 million science and innovation park, have designed and built a miniature space laboratory called a Petri Pod, based around the principle of the biological culture petri dish invented in 1887 and based upon earlier development work by the University of Exeter and Leicester, that will allow scientists on Earth to study biological organisms in space.
There is a burgeoning global drive for humans to colonise space, the Moon and other planets of our Solar System, but one of the challenges is the harmful effects of extended exposure to the effects of the space environment on human physiology. This includes microgravity which can lead to bone and muscle loss, fluid shift and vision problems in humans as well as radiation induced effects genetic damage, increased cancer risk, etc.
Hence life sciences experiments that investigate these effects on biology are an essential precursor to safe human space travel. The Fluorescent Deep Space Petri-Pod (FDSPP) has been developed by the Space Park Leicester team with the scientific lead Tim Etheridge at the University of Exeter and is tailored to the unique constraints of the space-based biology research that is urgently needed.
The Petri Pod is a miniaturised hardware solution for performing remotely operated biological experimentation on multiple types of organisms, via fluorescent and white light imaging capabilities in deep space. It is a self-contained experiment within a housing measuring approximately 10x10x30cm and weighing around 3kg, containing 12 Petri-Pods for experiments, four of which can be actively imaged. Each Petri Pod maintains a trapped volume of air and a stable comfortable temperature for the organisms when the unit is exposed to the vacuum of space. The worms are provided with food and water by means of an Agar carrier and the trapped air is sufficient for the small organisms involved. A more advanced version with 'life support' for larger and more complex organisms or extended missions is planned for the future based around the existing system.
The flight system hardware, along with a spare, has been delivered to the USA and has successfully undergone acceptance testing during the last two weeks, prior to it being launched on a cargo flight to the International Space Station (ISS) in April 2026. Its first passengers will be C-Elegans Nematode Worms which have natural fluorescent markers in their heads. These will be installed just before launch. Initially, the experiment and worms will spend time inside the ISS before being deployed outside on an experimental platform to expose the Petri Pod to the vacuum and radiation of space along with the micro-gravity environment for at least a 15-week period. The eight non-imaged 'Petri Pods' will contain a variety of other biological test subjects e.g., micro-organisms, along with tests of various materials. The experiment will be returned to Earth from the ISS after exposure on a future cargo return flight.
During the experiment the health of the worms will be monitored using photographic stills and time-lapse video captured with miniature cameras and by exposure to white light, or by fluorescent stimulation using low powered lasers, under the control of onboard microcontroller units. The FDSPP will collect data on temperature and pressure inside and outside of the containment volumes ('Petri Pods'), and characterise the background radiation by monitoring accumulated radiation dose. Data will be stored locally in the unit for download on its return to Earth and also relayed to the Earth ground station over the ISS downlink communication system. The mission is enabled by funding from the UK Space Agency and commercial launch and support by Voyager Technologies based in Houston USA.
Professor Mark Sims who acted a project manager for FDSPP at Leicester said: "The Fluorescent Deep Space Petri-Pod has been engineered using the electronic, engineering, software and science expertise of the Space Park Leicester team, based around the 65-year heritage of space experiments at Leicester. This mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will demonstrate the flight-readiness of FDSPP and we believe its success will help position the UK amongst the global leaders of life sciences research on future low Earth orbit, Lunar and Mars missions planned by Space Agencies and private companies."
