Virgin Galactic Secures Repeat Research Flight Agreement with IIAS

Thursday, June 20, 2024

Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SPCE) disclosed today its new partnership with the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS), arranging for three IIAS research astronauts to journey aboard Virgin Galactic’s upcoming Delta Class spacecraft.

This collaboration marks the second joint research endeavor between the two entities, building on the success of the “Galactic 05” mission in November 2023. During that mission, innovative healthcare technologies were tested, and studies on fluid dynamics in microgravity were conducted to advance the development of medical technologies and life-support systems. The upcoming mission is scheduled within the initial year of the Delta Class’s commercial operations, which are on course to begin in 2026.

“We were thrilled with the results from our fluid cell experiment on ‘Galactic 05’, which demonstrated our ability to accurately predict the behavior of fluid in a container in a weightless environment. We’ll be expanding on that research for our next mission, and I’ll be working to demonstrate our ability to control the behavior of the liquid as well,” said astronaut and IIAS Director of Human Spaceflight Operations Kellie Gerardi. “The quality and repeatability of the microgravity environment provided by Virgin Galactic’s system is truly game-changing and the potential for a ‘fly, fix, fly’ approach opens the door to many exciting possibilities for IIAS to make discoveries that benefit future explorers.”

The upcoming IIAS research team is set to include:

• Kellie Gerardi, a U.S.-based bioastronautics researcher and the IIAS Director of Human Spaceflight Operations. Gerardi has prior experience from her role as a payload specialist on the “Galactic 05” mission.
• Dr. Shawna Pandya, a physician and aquanaut from Canada, who also serves as the Director of IIAS’s Space Medicine Group.
• Dr. Norah Patten, an aeronautical engineer from Ireland, who specializes in bioastronautics research.

“We’re excited to continue our partnership with IIAS in an expanded capacity,” said Virgin Galactic Vice President of Government Affairs and Research Operations, Sirisha Bandla. “Our suborbital science lab is revolutionizing the field of microgravity research by offering routine, reliable access to space – and it’s great to see institutions like IIAS begin to build iterative and innovative campaigns around suborbital space-based research.”

The mission aims to not only initiate new research projects but also extend the findings from “Galactic 05.” During that mission, astronaut Kellie Gerardi successfully confirmed a fluid behavior theory under the optimal microgravity conditions provided by Virgin Galactic’s flight system. The team plans to include additional fluid cells in this mission, enhanced with improved camera quality and accelerometer features.

Virgin Galactic’s Delta Class spacecraft can be adjusted to accommodate six mission specialists or a combination of four specialists and two payload racks, based on client specifications. Updates on additional mission specialists and payloads will be released as the mission roster expands.

Each Delta Class spaceship is projected to handle up to eight space missions monthly, significantly increasing the frequency compared to the Company’s initial VSS Unity spacecraft. This expansion is expected to substantially boost consistent and dependable access to microgravity environments.