Space and Physics
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The California-based startup Varda Space Industries made history earlier this week after it successfully returned samples of a drug it made in orbit.
After months of setbacks where the company’s in-space manufacturing capsule was held in orbit due to re-entry denial, the re-entry capsule safely touched down in the Utah desert on Wednesday, February 21.
Back in June 2023, Varda Space Industries announced the successful production the drug in what was the world’s first mini-space factory. This drug-making mission was sent on its ride into the atmosphere by the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket which lifted off on 12 June. The drug-making process was then conducted in the W-Series 1 satellite, which was attached to the Rocket Lab’s orbital Photon platform.
The drug-making process lasted about 27 hours and finished on June 30.
During its operations, the mini-factory managed to produce crystals of ritonavir, a protease inhibitor used for the treatment of HIV/Aids.
You might be wondering why they needed to produce this drug in space, which seems like a lot of effort, but there is a good reason. The loss of gravity is key here. In space environments, the company can promote the formation of higher-quality protein crystal structures at a faster pace than on Earth.
After their experiment, a data downlink from the satellite confirmed it had been successful.
At the time, the capsule was expected to land back in July 2023, but the US Federal Aviation Administration (FFA) denied its re-entry. So there it stayed, stuck in space until this week.
The re-entry capsule, designed by Rocket Lab, landed at the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR) at Hill Air Force Base, around 80 miles (128.74 KM) west of Salt Lake City.
Once Varda recovered the capsule, which landed perfectly safely, the company shipped it back to its facilities in Los Angeles for further analysis.
“Additional, data collected throughout the entirety of the capsule’s flight – including a portion where we reached hypersonic speeds – will be shared with the Air Force and NASA under a contract Varda has with those agencies”, the company explained in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter.
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