For scientists, space holds unique possibilities to elevate research by removing one of the most disruptive variables – gravity. Working in microgravity via sounding rocket missions offers something few other platforms can: real space conditions delivered quickly, flexibly and at comparatively low cost. That makes them an important tool for research, enabling universities, institutes and companies to test ideas, validate technologies and generate results on timelines that orbital missions often cannot match.
In May, SSC Space launched its latest ride-share flight service: SubOrbital Express-5. The sounding rocket took off from the Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, northern Sweden, providing access to space for 12 advanced scientific projects from organisations in nine countries.
Most were funded by the European Space Agency (ESA).
SubOrbital Express-5 reached an apogee of 260 km and created a brief but powerful environment where gravity effectively disappears, allowing scientists to observe physical, biological and medical phenomena impossible to replicate on Earth.
The mission was the seventeenth in the microgravity sounding rocket series, a programme that began in the 1980s as MASER and has become one of Europe’s longest-running microgravity research initiatives. The experiments on board were exposed to microgravity for six minutes.
“A few minutes of microgravity may sound insignificant, but it can be transformative and there is already a lot of evidence of this,” says Stefan Krämer, programme manager, SubOrbital Express at SSC Space, Science Services.
Why removing gravity changes the game
Gravity governs almost every process on Earth. It influences how fluids move, how particles settle, how cells behave, and how materials form. For scientists trying to isolate subtle interactions – molecular forces, cellular responses or chemical reactions – gravity can act as a source of noise. Remove it, and entirely new observations become possible.
Microgravity research enables scientists to study physical, chemical, and biological processes without gravity masking key effects, revealing fundamental mechanisms that cannot be observed on Earth.
“Gravity has an overshadowing effect,” Krämer explains. “When you really want to see small interactions and forces, you need to take away one of the biggest influencing factors. That’s why we go to space.”
Historically, microgravity research emerged alongside early space stations and later the ISS. But sounding rockets developed in parallel as an important complementary platform. Unlike orbital missions, which can take years to prepare and require extensive qualification processes, sounding rockets provide faster, cheaper and more flexible access to space.
In addition, experiments involving advanced chemicals, X-rays, technology testing or novel systems can often move faster through sounding rocket program than crewed environments. Scientists remain on the ground, monitoring and adjusting experiments in real-time during flight. Increasingly, the applications from universities, scientists, commercial actors and bioscience companies are expanding.
Microgravity research has contributed to breakthroughs in medicine, materials science, and biotechnology, for example improving drug development, understanding diseases, and creating higher‑quality materials and semiconductors.
From cancer cells to the origins of planets
The payload on board SubOrbital Express-5 reflects how broad the field has become.
The mission included research into metal science, medicine-related fluid behavior and human blood flow dynamics. Its ride-share module enabled projects investigating stem cells, immune cell behavior and alloy solidification processes.
Life sciences have become one of the fastest-moving areas. Under microgravity conditions, cells can behave in ways that mimic ageing and disease progression at accelerated rates. Researchers studying cancer, immune response and tissue development can observe changes that might otherwise take years.
Protein crystallisation is another area drawing increasing attention. Microgravity conditions can enable larger, more structurally uniform protein crystals with fewer defects, potentially helping researchers better understand disease mechanisms and develop new therapeutics.
The commercial space sector increasingly sees microgravity as a route to future medical breakthroughs. Research aboard the ISS has already contributed to work on antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and more targeted cancer therapies. But there has also been interest in other areas, from research into colloids, which are used in a range of everyday products like shampoo, to experiments designed to improve our understanding of planetary formation.
“Researchers suspended dust particles in microgravity to study how they cluster and overcome the so-called ‘bouncing barrier’ – a problem in understanding how tiny particles eventually form planets, says Krämer. “Statistically, particles should simply bounce off each other. But we’re here, so clearly something else is happening.”
The experiments demonstrated that electrostatic forces helped particles stick together, offering new insights into how planets may have formed.
Choosing the right partner to support effective R&D in space
For organisations trying to turn microgravity into usable insight, whether in materials, life sciences, or technology advancement, simply reaching space is only one part of the challenge. The bigger question is how to design, qualify, fly, recover, and interpret experiments in a way that reliably produces results and return on investment.
The SSC Space SubOrbital Express increasingly operates through shared modules carrying multiple smaller experiments, creating lower-cost entry points for startups and universities alongside major institutional customers. Those shared modules can host up to 8 small experiments, allowing teams to buy only the capacity they need, while still receiving the same support level as larger payloads.
“It is important to note that SSC Space is an end-to-end microgravity services provider, not just a transportation broker piecing together multiple suppliers,” says Krämer. “We’re not just a flight ticket. We are not just here to launch rockets. We have the science and our customer’s goal in mind.”
In practice, that means working from early requirements through experiment design, build and test, supporting iterative validation on other platforms when needed, such as drop tower testing, and then delivering not just the flight but the post-flight data – as Krämer puts it, “the real product”.
“Operational details matter too, particularly for life sciences. Esrange Space Center allows late sample loading and rapid recovery, helping to ensure sensitive biological materials aren’t jeopardised by weather-driven launch delays or long return timelines.
“In a market that can underestimate the complexity of microgravity R&D, the most effective partners will be those who combine access with deep, practical experience in turning minutes of freefall into mission-ready science,” Krämer adds.
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