The European Space for Health Alliance (ESHA) Addresses Growing Demand for Space Medicine and Microgravity Research with Berlin Symposium
- Apr 13
- 5 min read
Berlin, April 8, 2026 – As Europe approaches the end of the ISS era, the question of how to secure continued access to microgravity research is becoming critical for its scientific and industrial competitiveness. The European Space for Health Alliance (ESHA) will convene a high-level symposium on April 16 focused on enabling standardised, reliable logistics to access space-enabled health research. Senior leaders from healthcare, biotechnology, and the space industry will discuss microgravity and orbital infrastructure solutions to accelerate biomedical R&D in life sciences. Hosted in the Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) Berlin headquarters, a key outcome of the summit will be a white paper that captures the chances and challenges of space-based research in Europe. Without coordinated action, Europe risks losing both access to microgravity research and its ability to translate scientific excellence into industrial value.
Space-enabled health and biomanufacturing are emerging as a new industrial domain at the intersection of life sciences and space infrastructure
Microgravity provides a unique research environment where disease mechanisms can be studied under accelerated conditions, opening new pathways for drug discovery and regenerative medicine. This enables researchers to investigate conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, cancer, and musculoskeletal diseases in a condensed timeframe, potentially reducing years of research and accelerating the development of new therapies.
The ESHA Berlin symposium will feature panel discussions and best-practice insights on creating reliable, scalable orbital transportation infrastructure, including next-generation reusable transport and return systems designed to enable reliable in-orbit research and sample recovery. Topics will include the transport, handling, and preservation of biological samples, mission planning for medical experiments, and how microgravity research can yield new insights for drug development and regenerative medicine. Expert speakers are representatives of The European Space Agency (ESA), the UK Space Agency (UKSA), MSD, and participating ESHA members.
At the event, results of the UK-government funded initiative BRIDGE led by Frontier Space in partnership with The Exploration Company (TEC) and MSD will also be presented. The flagship project for microgravity research addresses a critical bottleneck in space-based life sciences by providing standardised logistics, environmental control, and sample integrity for sensitive biological payloads.
Europe faces mounting pressure as space infrastructure, pharma investment, and domestic demographics shift
Europe is currently facing a pivotal moment as several structural pressures converge to challenge its economic competitiveness. Aboard the International Space Station (ISS) Europe has contributed to approximately 13% of all experiments conducted to date in microgravity research, building scientific expertise and operational know-how. The scheduled retirement of the ISS by 2030 now threatens Europe’s routine and reliable access to orbital research infrastructure.
Simultaneously, major pharmaceutical investments are increasingly shifting from Europe to the United States. These developments coincide with mounting demographic and healthcare pressures across the continent, which demand faster and more effective biomedical innovation. Together, these trends risk weakening Europe’s position across both life sciences and space unless new capabilities are developed. Without timely investment in infrastructure, Europe risks losing both its scientific leadership and its ability to translate research into industrial value.
“Space medicine depends not only on scientific excellence, but on reliable and scalable logistics,” says Hélène Huby, CEO of The Exploration Company. “This initiative shows how coordinated European capabilities can enable high-quality microgravity research and accelerate its translation into medical progress on Earth. By building shared infrastructure across nations, we are laying the foundation for a more collaborative space ecosystem that ultimately serves people on Earth.”
Aqeel Shamsul, CEO, Frontier Space, said, “The European life sciences sector is at a critical inflexion point. As global competition for pharmaceutical innovation intensifies, microgravity-enabled medicine is poised to be a strategic asset for European pharmaceutical companies. Europe has demonstrated its leadership in biotech research during the ISS era, and companies such as TEC and ATMOS are emerging leaders in next-generation orbital infrastructure. We need to ensure Europe does not lose momentum in microgravity research, and building reliable commercial pathways for biological research in space is not only a scientific priority, but a strategic one. At Frontier Space, we are proud to contribute to that effort through our platform technologies and partnerships that help make space research operationally viable for life sciences with the end goal of improving patient’s life.
"Space-based life sciences only deliver results when research makes it back to Earth. Europe has world-class science. What it needs now is the infrastructure to operate in orbit and bring results back regularly,” says Sebastian Klaus, CEO of ATMOS Space Cargo. “Space-enabled health will not scale without return logistics. To move from experimentation to industrial application, Europe needs to build that capability now. As a member of ESHA, we are closing that gap. Our path to space must always lead back to Earth."
Dominic Michael James, CEO of Future Centric, said, “Space-enabled health must serve the many, not the few. Researchers need affordable access, companies need scalable platforms, and patients need the breakthroughs that only microgravity can unlock. None of that happens without continued investment in the infrastructure that connects space to Earth. Our mission is to turn orbital discovery into global benefit.”
About the European Space for Health Alliance (ESHA)
The European Space for Health Alliance (ESHA) is a collaboration of the German-French aerospace startup The Exploration Company (TEC), the UK-based biotechnology company Frontier Space, and the FranGerman space company Atmos Space Cargo. Through joint logistical solutions and mission expertise, the partners support microgravity research with the goal of generating knowledge with direct benefits for life sciences and healthcare on Earth.
About The Exploration Company
Founded in 2021 by Hélène Huby, The Exploration Company is a leading European space enterprise developing modular, reusable spacecraft to enable sustainable space logistics. Its Nyx vehicle is designed for cargo missions to low Earth orbit and the Moon, with a long-term roadmap toward human spaceflight. The maiden flight of Nyx to the International Space Station (ISS) is scheduled for August 2028.
The company is building an open and collaborative space logistics infrastructure to support a broad range of commercial and institutional missions. With more than 400 employees across sites in Munich, Bordeaux, Turin, Luxembourg, Houston, and Dubai, The Exploration Company has secured over €800 million in contracts and raised €300 million from leading investors, including a €150 million Series B round in 2024 led by Balderton Capital and Plural, one of the largest funding rounds in the European space sector.
About Frontier Space
Frontier Space is a UK space biotech company building platform technology to unlock the potential of pharmaceutical in-space biomanufacturing and research & development for the emerging commercial space industry. The company’s platform technologies, SpaceLab and XSB, aim to offer accessible, flexible, and scalable infrastructure for pharmaceutical R&D and biomanufacturing in orbit.
About ATMOS Space Cargo GmbH
ATMOS Space Cargo is a European space company building a reusable return logistics platform to transport, operate, and return cargo from Low Earth Orbit. Its core technology, the PHOENIX – a return-enabled spacecraft equipped with an inflatable heat shield – closes the full orbital logistics loop to support microgravity research, in-orbit manufacturing, and European strategic autonomy in space. ATMOS plans to fly its next three missions until 2027.
About Future Centric
Future Centric Ltd is a UK based health innovation company focused on helping healthcare leaders achieve 10x improvements in health outcomes through digital, data and AI driven technologies. It operates as a strategy partner, a venture builder and a platform for amplifying breakthrough ideas.
Media Contact:
The Exploration Company GmbH
Frontier Space
Anjali Sanjay
ATMOS Space Cargo GmbH
Krystian Bandzimiera
Future Centric
Dominic James