Microgravity as a research area encompasses the systematic investigation of physical, chemical, and biological processes under conditions of greatly reduced effective gravitational acceleration, such as in orbiting spacecraft, drop towers, or parabolic flights. It enables isolation of gravity-driven phenomena, allowing precise study of fluid dynamics, combustion, phase transitions, material solidification, colloidal behavior, and fundamental physics, as well as physiological and cellular responses to altered mechanical loading. Microgravity research supports development of validated models for transport processes, structure formation, and mechanobiology, and informs the design of space systems, countermeasures for human health in spaceflight, and advanced materials and processes with potential terrestrial applications.
Astronauts who undergo long-duration spaceflight aboard the International Space Station often return with health problems that resemble some age-related conditions in people on Earth.
Space Exploration
Sep 8, 2026
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The weak equivalence principle (WEP) is central to Einstein's general relativity. It posits that gravity must accelerate everything equally, regardless of what it is made from. For the first time, a team led by Ming-Sheng ...
As space missions become longer and ambitions for deep-space travel grow, scientists are working to understand how life beyond Earth may affect every system in the human body. Two years after her initial study took flight, ...
Space Exploration
Aug 27, 2026
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For astronauts in space, constipation is a well-known problem. But why this happens has long been unclear. Now, a new study from the University of Copenhagen in collaboration with NASA provides an idea of what happens in ...
Space Exploration
Aug 14, 2026
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It's common to see images of astronauts on the International Space Station exercising, running on special treadmills and pedaling cycles designed for tight quarters.
Space Exploration
Aug 12, 2026
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From reaching for a cup of coffee to tying your shoelaces, gravity shapes nearly all human movement. So how do our bodies react when that familiar force begins to change? Texas A&M University researchers are exploring the ...
Space Exploration
Aug 8, 2026
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You might think of rockets as powerful vehicles that blast astronaut crews and robotic missions into space. But what if they could be used to send cargo from one side of Earth to the other in a fraction of the time it would ...
Space Exploration
Aug 5, 2026
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Imagine trying to swallow a sip of water while your face feels stuffed with congestion, your sense of taste is dulled and your body is floating 250 miles (400 kilometers) above Earth.
Space Exploration
Aug 3, 2026
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The expense of launching cargo into space will plummet over the next few years, with the cost of reaching orbit forecast to more than halve between now and the end of the decade, and fall by around 93% by 2040, according ...
Space Exploration
Jul 14, 2026
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Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have switched on NASA's newly upgraded Cold Atom Lab, a one-of-a-kind facility designed to improve how scientists explore the fundamental workings of matter and develop new ...
Space Exploration
Jun 16, 2026
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