International Institute of Astronautical Sciences to Hitch a Ride Aboard Future Delta Spacecraft

Virgin Galactic has gotten a new contract from the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS), tasking them with the passage of 3 research astronauts aboard the future Delta Class spacecraft.

The mission will be the second that the Institute has undertaken with Galactic, following their first one, 'Galactic 05', which they finished up in November of 2023. That mission wasn't some joyride, but a study flight aimed at testing "novel healthcare technologies" by assessing the behavior of fluids in low gravity environments. They had apparently gleaned a lot of nifty data from that flight, enough to budget another mission along similar lines. The Institute should launch some time in 2026, once Virgin puts their Delta Class ships into commercial service. If successful, it will be a real boon to prove out Virgin Galactic's new toy as a true workhorse, and not just a ship fit for a "three hour tour". The Delta Class can be configured with variable payloads, whether that's seating for 6, or 4 with some cargo, depending on the mission's needs

“We were thrilled with the results from our fluid cell experiment on ‘Galactic 05’, which demonstrated our ability to accurately predict the behavior of fluid in a container in a weightless environment. We’ll be expanding on that research for our next mission, and I’ll be working to demonstrate our ability to control the behavior of the liquid as well,” said astronaut and IIAS Director of Human Spaceflight Operations Kellie Gerardi. 

“The quality and repeatability of the microgravity environment provided by Virgin Galactic’s system is truly game-changing and the potential for a ‘fly, fix, fly’ approach opens the door to many exciting possibilities for IIAS to make discoveries that benefit future explorers.”

“We’re excited to continue our partnership with IIAS in an expanded capacity,” said Virgin Galactic Vice President of Government Affairs and Research Operations, Sirisha Bandla. “Our suborbital science lab is revolutionizing the field of microgravity research by offering routine, reliable access to space – and it’s great to see institutions like IIAS begin to build iterative and innovative campaigns around suborbital space-based research.”

FMI: www.virgingalactic.com