The race to build manufacturing plants in space.

Many companies see the potential to manufacture certain products in outer space, where conditions like low temperatures, zero gravity, and a vacuum exist.

The International Space Station (ISS) as seen from SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft. Photo: NASA

For some startups, the most pressing question in manufacturing today is: How do we manufacture computer components, harvest stem cells, and produce pharmaceuticals in space?

Space manufacturing is already underway, at least at the research level, the Guardian reported on September 26. NASA is awarding $2 million to scientists to research whether zero-gravity conditions could help create new gene therapies and stem cell treatments. The US defense corporation Northrop Grumman is partnering with a startup to produce semiconductors in space. One expert predicts that by the end of this decade, humans will be using objects containing certain elements created outside of Earth.

Benefits of space factories

Billionaire Jeff Bezos believes that heavy manufacturing and air-polluting industries could operate far away from Earth. "This sounds far-fetched, but it will happen," he said.

According to proponents of building manufacturing plants in space, certain conditions in space, including low temperatures, near-zero gravity, and a vacuum, allow certain materials, such as crystals, to be produced with better quality than on Earth.

"Space is a much better place to carry out almost any industrial process. We live on a planet with gravity holding us down. We've created ovens, refrigerators, and vacuum pumps to help manufacture products on Earth, but if you go into space, you get those benefits for free," said Joshua Western, CEO of Space Forge, a Wales-based space technology manufacturer.

Some pharmaceutical companies hope to produce new drugs in space. Merck is collaborating with the International Space Station (ISS) to produce proteins in a weightless environment. Astronauts conducting experiments for Merck discovered that the crystals grown to produce the cancer drug Keytruda were smaller and more uniform than those grown on Earth.

Researchers at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) are experimenting with using extraterrestrial-derived resources to make drugs easier to preserve. According to Robert Garmise, vice president of materials science and engineering at BMS, the company is working on a range of issues including immunology, fibrosis, cardiovascular disease, and neuroscience.

Kevin Engelbert, NASA's Space Manufacturing Applications portfolio manager, said the agency has been working with commercial partners to realize extraterrestrial manufacturing since 2016. The goal is to develop a low Earth orbit economy , solidifying America's leadership position in the technology world.

In July, the American startup Varda Space Industries launched a spacecraft into Earth orbit. The spacecraft is intended to become a "space drug factory," automatically producing crystals of ritonavir, an antiviral drug used to treat HIV.

But as the spacecraft prepared to land in Utah, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the U.S. Air Force denied Varda's request to return to Earth. According to an FAA spokesperson, Varda did not have a re-entry permit before launching its vehicle into space. Varda requested the FAA to reconsider its decision on September 8, and this request is pending.

In July, Varda launched a spacecraft into Earth orbit. Photo: Varda Space Industries

The potential for developing a space factory.

As more and more private spacecraft are launched, the need for in-orbit manufacturing will also increase, according to Sita Sonty, CEO of Space Tango, a company that partners with the ISS to provide facilities to support research, development, and manufacturing in a microgravity environment.

Space manufacturing companies predict that the number of products manufactured in space will increase by the end of this decade as the ISS is no longer the sole research vehicle in space (the ISS is expected to cease operations around 2030). The more private vehicles in space, the greater the opportunities for extraterrestrial factories.

"With the advent of more commercial space stations, the cost of space travel will decrease significantly. The more flights we have, the more drug and stem cell samples we can send to see how they perform in orbit. Before long, we will see commercially viable applications," Sonty stated.

Thu Thao (According to Guardian )

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