ISRO-IISc Bangalore jointly develop device for conducting biological experiments in space

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in a joint project with Bangalore's prestigious Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have successfully developed a modular device that would help to conduct microbial experiments in outer space including cultivating microorganisms. As per the journal Acta Astronautica, the collaborators achieved the milestone after successfully testing the device on the bacterium "sporosarcina pasteurii", which was able to track their growth.

Why is this significant?

The device might prove to be a breakthrough in space science as it will provide details about how microorganisms function in harsh outer space conditions, the results of which can be used for future human endeavours. Besides, the device operates automatically with zero human involvement and minimal energy requirement. In their official press release, the IISc said, Ünderstanding how such microbes behave in extreme environments could provide valuable insights for human space missions such as the 'Gaganyaan', India's first crewed spacecraft scheduled for 2022". 

How does this device work?

Based on the description by IISc, the device has in-built cartridges, which is made of several compartments. The cartridges precisely have three compartments that are filled with sucrose solution, which can be mixed with a nutrient medium, thus triggering the growth of the bacteria. Further, this process of mixing the solution can be done remotely through a switch, and the bacterial growth can be tracked by the LED-photodiode sensor combination equipped within. Scientists believe that four such cartridges can be part of the payload and perform 12 different experiments simultaneously. Notably, each cartridge consumes power even less than one watt. 

However, Koushik Vishwanathan, assistant professor at IISc's Department of Mechanical Engineering, said, in a study published in Acta Astronautica that, the device should be ultimately "self-contained". He added, "you can't simply expect the same conditions as you would get in a normal laboratory setting and you can't have something that guzzles 500W". Besides, there are several hurdles and concerns raised by Aloke Kumar, associate professor at IISc. The professor stated, "This is a non-traditional environment for the bacteria to grow. We had to see whether we would get consistent results in this smaller volume". Currently, scientists are faced with the challenge of making the device flight-ready and immune to cosmic stressors and acceleration due to gravity. Moreover, Aloke Kumar also adhered that heat generated from the consistently blinking LED light might also cause a change in the bacterial growth characteristics. 

Image Credit: @ISRO/TWITTER