NASA, the University of Santiago de Chile, and top U.S. defense agencies are joining forces for a historic space mission. The collaborative effort will test whether extremophile microorganisms can survive outside the International Space Station (ISS). Participating institutions include the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), the DoD Space Test Program (DoD STP), the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA), and the Bioscience Foundation.
On May 11, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) carrying six Chilean extremophile microorganisms to the International Space Station. The mission will expose three native bacteria and three native archaea species to orbital space conditions, including microgravity, high UV and gamma radiation, and temperature extremes ranging from -45°C to 60°C. Evaluating how these extremophiles adapt in orbit offers critical insights for long-term space exploration and life support systems.
"This is the first time the behavior of extremophile microorganisms will be studied in viable cultures exposed directly to outer space," explains Dr. Blamey. "For six months outside the International Space Station, these organisms will endure orbital conditions before returning to Earth for morphological, genomic, and proteomic analysis to see how they've changed. It's an unprecedented step in space research."
According to researchers from the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology at the University of Santiago de Chile, the mission holds dual importance. "This expedition is doubly important: both for advances in space biology and for our country, since all the microorganisms under study have been isolated from Chile." Ultimately, the project will expand our understanding of astrobiology, microbiology, and fundamental biochemistry.
Leadership from top scientific, military, and academic institutions gathered in the Rector Eduardo Morales Santos (REMS) Building Auditorium on Monday, the 20th, for the presentation of the POLARIS project.
Distinguished guests included Dr. Bernardo Morales (Dean, Faculty of Chemistry and Biology), Dr. Travis Tubbs (AFOSR / SOARD, U.S. Embassy in Chile), Dr. Marcos Díaz (Space and Planetary Exploration Laboratory, University of Chile), Olivier Rickmers (Biociencia Foundation), and Roberto Zambrano (Swissaustral).
Watch the presentation ceremony of the Polaris Project on YouTube (2 mins), in which the researchers discuss the mission details.