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Feature|Articles|November 4, 2026
The Promise of Microgravity for R&D and Manufacturing
Author(s)Sophia Goeppinger, Raphael Roettgen
As access to low Earth orbit expands, space-based research is opening possibilities in drug discovery, formulation, and manufacturing. In Part 1, the authors look at how microgravity changes biology and chemistry in ways that can’t be reproduced on Earth and where it fits from target discovery to life cycle management.
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Falling space operating costs and upcoming capacity are making Earth’s orbits an economically viable environment for developing therapeutics and medtech. Biopharma can use persistent microgravity in low Earth orbit (LEO) for research and development (R&D) and for manufacturing. We refer to this application class as SpaceBio. Microgravity alters biological and chemical processes in ways that are difficult, and often outright impossible, to reproduce under Earth’s gravity.
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