The first space factory in trouble

The following event is somewhat strange, it may be the product of a failure, but it would be a huge failure. On June 12, SpaceX had launched a rocket into space that, in addition to carrying various satellites, also carried the prototype of the first space factory in history. , built by Rocketlab for the company Varda Space industries, which is the one that manages this entire project.

What can be manufactured in space that is more profitable than doing it on Earth? For example, new metal alloys or chemical compounds that require vacuum and weightlessness conditions can be achieved. These compounds have surprising properties and enormous value since they are extremely difficult to achieve on earth and although vacuum can be achieved, weightlessness is very difficult and is only achieved for a few seconds through free fall.

What Varda Space wants to achieve are pharmaceutical substances that are very difficult to obtain on earth, specifically they have managed to grow Ritovanir crystals, a medicine that is used to treat HIV patients. Once these crystals are obtained, they would be loaded into a capsule that would be would launch towards Earth, if everything goes well it would be the first step in the creation of space factories, large-scale autonomous factories, a new source of business to colonize space.

So far everything is perfect, Roque lab built the ship, SpaceX launched it and Varda space was managing it and everything was going very well, until those at Varda Space realized that they were missing something essential in this whole project, it turns out that they did not have permission to the United States authorities to return the capsule with the crystals to Earth.

A spokesperson for the United States Air Force, quoted last Saturday by the TechCrunch portal, reported that the company Varda Space Industries had been denied permission for its space capsule to land in an area within the testing and training range. of Utah, due to literally saying “general risk and impact safety analysis,” likewise a spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration assured that Varda's request to obtain a commercial re-entry license was rejected on September 6. because literally “the company did not demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements.”

At the moment Varda has requested a review to be granted permission, in any case, the ship is designed so that it can orbit the earth for a year so there are still months for Varda to solve the problem and for the capsule to return with its valuable cargo lands either in the United States or Barda may look for a plan B and have the capsule land in another country.

One option could be Australia, that is where the Japanese collected the Hayabusa 2 mission capsule in 2020 with samples that came from the asteroid Ryugu, Australia with its large, wide and clear plains is an ideal place for landing spacecraft, this is just A suggestion.

Thank you for visiting my blog. If you like posts about

, , , , and discovering secrets and beauties of the , feel free to Follow me as these are the topics I write about the most. Have a wonderful day and stay on this great platform :) :)

! The truth will set us free and science is the one that is closest to the truth!