Scientists at UC San Diego have sent tumors into space aboard a SpaceX rocket traveling to the International Space Station. Why? Because the compression of time that occurs in space will allow researcher to see results within one month that would take 10-years on earth!
A group of UC San Diego scientists were on hand at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Friday to witness the inaugural commercial flight of Axiom Space as it launched with the tumor specimens on board. The Axiom Space crew will transport the specimens and research material to the International Space Station where astronauts will conduct experiments designed and monitored by the scientists at UC San Diego.
The team at UC San Diego includes Dr. Catriona Jamieson, who says space is useful in studying cancer. “This compresses the timeframe," Jamieson told ABC 10News. "So in one month, we see the aging in cancer stem cells or our normal stem cells that we see in a one-month period that we would see in a 10-year period on earth.”
The goal of the space experiments is to see whether they can stop cancer cells from replicating and to learn how to to grow cells in space. There results could lead to the development of new medicines for treating people on earth, and keeping astronauts safe as space travel becomes more common.
“This is a dream worth chasing. Making humanity healthier," said Jamieson.
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