The facility simulates the gravity of the earth 20 times, and the United Nations plans to open it to students

What is Hyper Gravity? Know more…

Tuesday, 7th September 2021

As countries seek to expand human presence in space, the United Nations (UN) and the European Space Agency (ESA) are opening large-diameter centrifuges (LDC) for students to conduct supergravity experiments. The facility will be completed as part of the second round of HyperGES scholarships of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.

The Supergravity Facility is located in the Netherlands and will provide students with the opportunity to experience various stages of supergravity up to 20 times the Earth's gravity within a few weeks or even months.

The centrifuge rotates at full speed at 67 revolutions per minute, and its arms weigh 130 kilograms, and each arm can hold 80 kilograms of payload. The centrifuge will be used by researchers in life and physical science research in conjunction with commercial experiments. The European Space Agency said in a statement: “We use centrifuges to observe how the materials and components of the candidate spacecraft respond to the severe accelerations involved in launching into space.”

With the aid of the supergravity facility, researchers only need to turn the dial. Increase gravity.

"The idea behind this new scholarship is to allow LDC to reach teams from all over the world, especially teams from developing countries, otherwise they may not be able to obtain such equipment," the space agency said, adding that the series provides an overview The basic principles, special features and benefits provided by the supergravity/microgravity environment.

The first round of scholarships was won by a team from Mahidol University in Thailand. They investigated the response of the smallest flowering plant on the planet to changes in severity, even smaller than the most famous duckweed. The team tried to understand its usefulness for space-based life support systems.

The second round of scholarship applications announced by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs will remain open until February 28, 2022.

"Thanks to the joint efforts of the Office and its partners, the Space for All Initiative is playing a key role in closing the space gap By providing all United Nations Member States with state-of-the-art facilities, such as large diameter centrifuges, ESA has reaffirmed its role as "human." Everyone enjoys the space initiative "partner engagement," said the director of the Office for Outer Space Affairs, Simonetta DiPipo, in a statement.

The News Talkie Bureau

Source:

Indiatoday