John Doe

Companies in Europe and Canada are asked to express their interest in offering Lunar Communications and Navigation Services to enable sustainable lunar exploration. The ESA is seeking organizations that intend to develop the constellation of lunar satellites or to provide products and technology that are relevant to it.

Take part in the dynamic Lunar Economy. Northern Sky Research’s market analysis predicts that the lunar economy will generate €100 billion, resulting in the creation of jobs and prosperity on Earth.

More than 250 lunar missions are planned for the coming ten years. Transportation, communications, and navigation capabilities are needed for every mission.

You can participate in the Moonlight Programme and become a part of the developing Lunar economy.

This Request For Information (RFI) is part of the Moonlight initiative.

The Moonlight Programme is proposing the development of new Communications (Coms) and Navigation (Nav) services around the Moon. The approach relies on a public-private partnership model (PPP), involving the private sector playing a prominent role in developing and operating the system, as well as providing Coms and Nav functions as services on and around the Moon on a commercial basis. The focus is therefore on the Services to be delivered to the Agency, its partner Agencies and any third-party entities willing to procure those services

Moonlight will be part of the ESA proposals due to be approved and funded at the ESA Council of Ministers (CM22) in November.

Get to know more about the Moonlight programme by watching this Industry Space Days Talk given on 29 September.

The 3 BSGN Industry Accelerators opened their calls for proposals.

The BSGN Industry Accelerators are run by Industrial Partners. They connect European Industry to new Business Opportunities. They are calling for research and development projects benefiting from the space environment vantage points.

In the International Space Station, there is no gravity. Under microgravity, crystals grow at higher fidelity which allows for more uniform growth of microstructures such as crystals.

There is no buoyancy in space, matters can be mixed evenly no matter their density due to the impaired phase separation process.

To participate prepare your project proposal and submit it to the right call. If you are selected, the BSGN Industry Accelerator will provide you with technical and business support and funding for your project to take off the ground and travel to the International Space Station.

Life sciences

The BSGN Life Sciences Accelerator led by MEDES is looking for your project proposals related to antibodies, therapeutics molecules and proteins, gene therapy vectors, cell therapied, vaccines. These are examples of areas, the call is not limited to the ones mentioned above.

Apply here

Where can you meet?

Webinar 27 Oct From 11:30 to 12:30 CEST – BSGN Life Science open call for proposals | Informational Webinar. Watch the recording

Agriculture & Food

The BSGN Agriculture & Food Accelerator is led by the Space Cooperative Europe and is looking for proposals increasing crops yields, monitoring techniques, plant microbes and food optimization and formulation. These are examples of areas, the call is not limited to the ones mentioned above.

This Call is now closed.

You can join the Agrifood community platform to stay updated of new calls: BSGN AgriFood Community / Registration Form (spacecoop.eu)

Where can you meet? 

There was a webinar on 13 Oct. You can watch the recording here.

Advanced Materials & Manufacturing

The BSGN Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Accelerator led by Catapult Satellite Applications is looking for project proposals in improving formulation, improving deposition. and advance materials These are examples of areas, the call is not limited to the ones mentioned above.

Apply here

Where can you meet? 

Workshop 17 Oct From 10:30 to 13:30 CEST – BSGN Advanced Materials Accelerator: deep-dive into microgravity-enabled opportunities for advanced materials Watch the recording

BSGN is carried out under a programme of and funded by ESA, the European Space Agency.

In 2021 Project Maleth, the first ever Maltese space mission, sent skin samples from patients with diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) to be cultured on the International Space Station (ISS). Now, Maleth II is on its way to follow up on these results on its second research mission to space. Enabled by the ICE Cubes service, commercial service provider in partnership with ESA, the mission is intended to replicate and validate the observations of the Maleth I mission, as well as conduct additional studies of its own.

Project Maleth is led by Professor Joseph Borg, a molecular geneticist and biomedical laboratory scientist from the University of Malta. The project focuses on research to improve precision-based medicine at treating Diabetic Foot Ulcers (DFUs) more efficiently. The research involves studying human skin microbiome samples from Type 2 diabetic patients with DFUs that are resistant to treatment. Microbiome is the collective term for all microbes, such as bacteria and fungi, that live in the human body or on the human skin.

Microgravity and the harsh conditions of space provide a unique opportunity to better study the resistance of such microorganisms, which is why the researchers wanted to send these samples to space, more specifically, the International Space Station (ISS) through the ICE Cubes Service. Project Maleth’s first mission to the ISS, and Malta’s first ever mission to space, was Maleth I. Six skin samples were sent to determine the effects of spaceflight on the skin microbiome of DFUs, and their resistance to harsh environments.

Following the successful return and analysis of the samples from Maleth I, whose results are to be published by the end of the year, Project Maleth is now sending a second follow-up mission to the ISS, Maleth II. Maleth II is intended to replicate and validate the observations made in Maleth I, sending once again microbiome samples from patients with DFUs. However, this time, Yeast cell samples are also on their way to the ISS for additional research.

The aim is to better understand how these treatment resistant ulcers behave and how to better treat them. It has been shown in previous studies that the space environment instigates bacterial resistance to antibiotics. A lot is still not known about how bacteria acquire resistance and studying these bacteria in space coupled with genetic sequencing may help us better understand the mechanisms behind the development of resistance. Furthermore, other bacteria may be present which might not allow the proper healing of these ulcers. By identifying all of the bacteria present, one can determine if there are microorganisms that can be predictors of prognosis. Finally, the microbiome of healed ulcers can be compared to those that didn’t heal, giving an indication of which bacteria may be involved with chronicity.

Proiect Maleth aims to identify biomarkers (such as mRNA, a small single stranded piece of DNA) that could potentially be targeted for better management and treatment of patients, improving laboratory and healthcare services directly effecting the quality of life of Maltese diabetic patients and their families.

All data is deposited as part of NASA’s Gene Lab database, an open access analysis platform for bioscience research, which maximises the use of its data worldwide.

Space applications:

Identifying biomarkers present in the human skin microbiome can be used for potential targeted therapy in space missions, enhancing space travel of future astronauts going on deeper missions to the moon and Mars. The behaviour and relationship between oral, gut and skin microbiomes needs to be better understood under space conditions, to ensure the viability and success of future space missions to low Earth orbit and beyond.

Earth applications:

This project, holds a lot of promise to the benefit of patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus inflicted with Diabetic Foot Ulcers that are difficult to treat. If a number of biomarkers are identified using this approach, it can be a game changer for molecular therapy and precision based medicine aimed at treating these ulcers, and ensure a better quality of life to the patients and to their families.

Moreover, being Malta’s first biomedical science experiment to orbit, the project helps raise local awareness on important topics related to Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM), jointly with Esplora and the Malta Council for Science and Technology, as well as primary and secondary schools of Malta.

Maleth II contains not only technical replicates (I.e. replicas of the same type of sample), but also biological replicates (I.e. replicas from different time points, as it is the second time that this same study is being done in space). Biological replicates serve to demonstrate whether the results from the first experiment can be faithfully reproduced in follow-up experiments. If this is the case, researchers can then be much more confident of the results achieved.

Maleth II will also have additional metagenomics sequencing.

The experiment is enclosed in the ScienceCube, developed by the ICE Cubes service provided by Space Applications Services. The cube is housed in the ICE Cubes facility inside the Columbus module in the ISS, which is operated by the European Space Agency (ESA).  When installed in the ICE Cubes facility, the ScienceCube will be powered and real-time interaction becomes possible, allowing also to follow onboard imagery directly. This is one of the unique features provided by the ICE Cubes service.

The cube for Maleth II has an aluminium outer structure, as opposed to a plastic one as it was for Maleth I, ensuring a more robust housing for the experiment. The electronic internals were kept almost identical to those in Maleth I, apart from an upgraded onboard computer and control software.

The ScienceCube includes five independent human skin tissue samples containing their own unique microbiome, as well as one Bakers’ yeast sample, in lyophilized format. The human skin tissue samples are suspended in Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS) solution that is known (and has been tested) to maintain both human skin intact, and most importantly the microbiome, alive and well in suspension. The investigation is observed using the onboard cameras that overlook the cuvettes/samples inside the ScienceCube. All molecular work planned is only conducted before and after spaceflight (on sample return, approximately after 45 to 50 days on the space station).

Data connectivity and sample monitoring of the ScienceCube is made possible through data links as supplied by the ICE Cubes service and relayed to the Mission Control Centre set up in Malta managed by Arkafort Ltd.. The cube’s onboard computer is a Raspberry Pi, running a Linux OS along with some proprietary control software that allows for its remote operation.

(Updated): After a couple of delays, the experiment was successfully launched on15^th July 2022. The rocket that carried the experiment was SpaceX CRS-25 (Cargo Dragon). The cube flies back to Earth on 18th August 2022.

Watch ESA Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti installing the cube on the International Space Station (ISS):

In an interview with Dr. Hilde Stenuit, from the ICE Cubes Business Development Team, we asked why ICE Cubes is the best platform for this kind of research.

“Two reasons. The first is the ICE Cubes real-time interaction capability and real-time monitoring. Professor Borg and his team can have access to what’s happening inside the ScienceCube at all times. The second is the fast track aspect of the ICE Cubes service. For Maleth I, it took less than 11 months between first contact and the samples being back from Space on Earth for analysis.”

The ICE Cubes service is open to applications for both research as well as commercial use. You can learn more about it here: Services – ICE Cubes (icecubesservice.com).

Maleth II is supported by the Ministries for Foreign and European Affairs, as well as the Parliamentary Secretary Hon. Keith Tanti for Youth, Research and Innovation under the Ministry for Education, Malta. Moreover, this launch is being supported by the private sector that includes MeDirect – Malta’s first digital Bank and Singleron Biotechnologies, Cologne, Germany. The mission is being facilitated by the Research Innovation, Development Trust (RIDT) who will be supporting a PhD candidate, Ms Christina Gatt, and other students at the University of Malta as well as all the science being conducted in this second mission.

Arkafort Ltd. will manage the mission control centre and link-up directly with the ICE Cubes platform managed by Space Applications Services in the Columbus Module of the ISS.

The mission is enabled by ESA through the ISS commercial partnership initiative, which facilitates access to exploration infrastructure to private companies such as Space Application Services.

Follow BSGN’s linked-in page to stay tuned on similar news like this:

ESA Business in Space Growth Network (BSGN)

Follow the pre-launch event for SpaceX CRS-25 rocket:

https://www.spacex.com/launches/crs-25/

Learn more about Maleth I mission details:

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8619

All images provided by Professor Borg