Ground-Based Facilities (GBF)

ESA provides scientists with an opportunity to conduct research necessary to advance knowledge relevant to the effects of space on humans and/or biological life in general, as well as on physical or material science and systems, aiming to enable space exploration. Proposals shall address these research questions through ground-based experimental studies making use of the facilities.

The data obtained shall improve the current knowledge in the areas of interest, e.g. to develop diagnosis tools and countermeasure protocols for humans in space, to gain insights on the effect of space conditions on microbes or to develop new shielding techniques to protect equipment from space radiation. In addition to supporting the needs of human space exploration missions, the information obtained is relevant to improve Earth-based technologies and/or medical protocols.

ESA has currently 21 European facilities in its ground-based facilities portfolio.

• Micro G Lab, DLR, Cologne, Germany (link here)
• Vertical Treadmill Facility (VTF), DLR, Cologne, Germany (link here)
• :envifuge + Hyperscope, DLR, Cologne, Germany (link here)
• Short Arm Human Centrifuge, MEDES, Toulouse, France (link here)
• Large Diameter Centrifuge (LDC), ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands (link here)
• Medium Sized Centrifuge for Acceleration Research (MidiCar), ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands (link here)
• Neutral Buoyancy Facility (NBF), EAC, Cologne, Germany (link here)
• Scientific Group of Space Biology and Medicine (GSBMS), Toulouse, France (link here)
• Astrobiology Space Simulation facilities (ABYSS), DLR, Cologne, Germany (link here)
• Gravitational Experimental Platform for Animal Models (GEPAM), Lorraine, France (link here)
• Locomotion on Other Planets – Hypergravity Analogue (LOOP), Milan, Italy (link here)
• DESDEMONA motion platform, Soesterberg, Netherlands (link here)
• Planica Planetary Habitat (PlanHab), Planica, Slovenia (link here)
• Aarhus Planetary Environment Facility, Institute of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus, Denmark (link here)
• European Shock-Tube for High Enthalpy Research (ESTHER), Lisbon, Portugal (link here)
• European 3D Bioprinting Consortium
  • 3D Bioprinting Lab, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany (link here).
  • Henry Royce Institute – Bioprinting Technology Platform, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK (link here)
  • Biofabrication Laboratory of Biomaterials Group, Warsaw University of Technology, Warsaw, Poland (link here)
  • Biofabrication Laboratory at the Research Center E. Paggio, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy (link here)
  • 3d FAB, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France (link here)
  • BIO-ORBIT, Regenerative Medicine Technologies Lab, Bellinzona, Switzerland (link here)

Proposals can be submitted on the OSIP platform