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Facilities for Simulation of Microgravity in the ESA Ground-Based Facility Programme

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Abstract

Knowledge of the role of gravity in fundamental biological processes and, consequently, the impact of exposure to microgravity conditions provide insight into the basics of the development of life as well as enabling long-term space exploration missions. However, experimentation in real microgravity is expensive and scarcely available; thus, a variety of platforms have been developed to provide, on Earth, an experimental condition comparable to real microgravity. With the aim of simulating microgravity conditions, different ground-based facilities (GBF) have been constructed such as clinostats and random positioning machines as well as magnets for magnetic levitation. Here, we give an overview of ground-based facilities for the simulation of microgravity which were used in the frame of an ESA ground-based research programme dedicated to providing scientists access to these experimental capabilities in order to prepare their space experiments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. German Aerospace Center (DLR), Gravitational Biology, Linder Hoehe, 51147, Cologne, Germany

    Sonja Brungs & Ruth Hemmersbach

  2. School of Engineering and Architecture, CC Aerospace Biomedical Science and Technology, Space Biology Group, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Hergiswil, Switzerland

    Marcel Egli & Simon L. Wuest

  3. High Field Magnet Laboratory (HFML), Institute for Molecules and Materials (IMM), Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands

    Peter C. M. Christianen

  4. DESC (Dutch Experiment Support Center), Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery / Oral Pathology, VU University Medical Center, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA), Amsterdam & ESA-ESTEC, TEC-MMG, Life & Physical Science, Instrumentation and Life Support Laboratory Noordwijk, Noordwijk, The Netherlands

    Jack J. W. A. van Loon

  5. Human Spaceflight and Operations, European Space Agency, Noordwijk, The Netherlands

    Thu Jennifer Ngo Anh

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  1. Sonja Brungs
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  2. Marcel Egli
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Brungs, S., Egli, M., Wuest, S.L. et al. Facilities for Simulation of Microgravity in the ESA Ground-Based Facility Programme. Microgravity Sci. Technol. 28, 191–203 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12217-015-9471-8

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