Türkiye’s second astronaut lifts off on path-breaking research flight

In another historic moment for Türkiye's human space flight journey, the country’s second astronaut soars into the skies for a suborbital research flight, during which he will perform seven experiments.

31-year-old engineer Tuva Cihangir Atasever embarked on his journey from Virgin Galactic’s Spaceport facility in New Mexico, United States, aboard the rocket-powered spaceplane VSS Unity on Saturday.

“Of course, it's an immense honour and a privilege to be able to carry out this second human space flight of Türkiye,” Atasever told TRT World in an exclusive interview amidst preparations for the flight, known as the Galactic 07 mission.

Notably, the space traveller is also representing Türkiye’s brother nation Azerbaijan, carrying their flag alongside the Turkish crescent and star in a celebration of his Azerbaijani heritage from his mother’s side.

Atasever took off on June 8 with carrier aircraft VMS Eve. But the real action will begin once they reach an altitude of 45,000 feet (13,700 kilometres), at which point Eve will release Unity.

“After release, the hybrid rocket engine on VSS Unity will be ignited and we will pitch upwards and reach, under a minute, velocities of 3 mach (3,700kph). That is three times the speed of sound, in just under a minute, so it will be a very dynamic and rapid increase of speed,” the astronaut explained.

This process will carry Unity to an expected altitude of about 90 kilometres. Once the engine cuts off, the Galactic 07 crew will experience microgravity conditions for approximately three minutes, during which Atasever will conduct seven scientific experiments spanning astroparticle physics, genetics, brain hemodynamics, biomedical devices, and cellular and molecular biology.

As Unity is left without an active propulsion system once its hybrid rocket engine exhausts itself, the spaceship will then “essentially glide down” back to Earth, to the same runway Eve took off from. The flight will last just over an hour.

Groundbreaking wearable payloads

Türkiye’s second human space flight follows the country’s inaugural astronaut Alper Gezeravci’s historic journey to the International Space Station (ISS) this January as part of Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3), during which he spent over two weeks on the orbiting station to conduct a total of 13 experiments prepared by Turkish scientists and institutions.

Atasever's mission, conducted in collaboration between the Turkish Space Agency (TUA), Axiom Space, and Virgin Galactic, not only aims to undertake four new experiments but also provides a crucial opportunity to collect further biomedical data for research previously conducted on Ax-3.

The 31-year-old engineer, who also served as the Ax-3 Backup Mission Specialist and spent months in intensive training with Gezeravci, is carrying three wearable payloads embedded into his custom-built flight suit.

The BEACON experiment, developed by Harvard Medical School and the Health Sciences University of Türkiye, will investigate how transitioning from a high-gravity environment to microgravity affects intracranial pressure.

Gravitational force typically aids in directing bodily fluids, including blood and cerebrospinal fluid, downwards. The lack thereof leads to an unusual buildup of fluids on higher parts of the body, increasing intracranial pressure, which can have adverse health effects including a decrease in visual acuity.

To investigate this, researchers will observe the blood circulation and cerebrospinal fluid dynamics of Atasever’s prefrontal cortex throughout the spaceflight with a special headgear using near-infrared spectroscopy.

“For the first time in the history of space flight, we will be able to get some measurements about cerebrospinal fluid dynamics and its contribution to that intracranial pressure increase,” promising invaluable insights into safeguarding space travellers’ well-being during extended space missions, Atasever told TRT World.

The astronaut will also conduct the first-ever insulin pen test in microgravity conditions as part of the experiment UZIKAT, developed by Axiom Space and TUA.

Atasever is carrying two insulin pens with different distension mechanisms. Upon entering microgravity, he will administer the insulin doses into collection caps within his flight suit to be measured on a high-precision scale when he returns.

The aim is to examine the dose transfer efficiencies of different insulin delivery mechanisms, “so that in the future, we can support individuals with diabetes to go to space,” Atasever explained.

The last experiment he will carry on his custom flight suit, designed by the Middle East Technical University, will measure his exposure to ionising radiation throughout the journey. Data collected by IvmeRad, a smart and active radiation dosimeter on his right arm, will then be utilised in another experiment, MIYELOID, designed by Türkiye’s Hacettepe University.

Human physiology experiments

With its new and continuing myriad of experiments, Türkiye's space research aspires to pave the way for new technologies, products and medical therapies that can be realised in the future.

MIYELOID is one of three experiments that Atasever continued from Gezeravci’s ISS mission. It investigates how the space environment, particularly radiation exposure, affects a specific group of cells called “myeloid-derived suppressor cells” which suppress the immune system.

Researchers will examine Atasever’s myeloid-type blood cell samples acquired before and after the flight, which will help them infer the possible effects of space travel on diseases related to the immune system, including cancer, in a pioneering contribution to scientific literature.

Another experiment that was also conducted on the ISS mission is METABOLOM, which will look into a myriad of metabolic changes and related gene alterations under the influence of suborbital flight conditions by examining biospecimen collected before and after the flight.

Through this study, scientists from Ankara University are hoping to gather new information to understand the possible risk factors associated with the health of space travellers.

The third continued experiment is MESSAGE. Researchers from Uskudar University will analyse Atasever’s gene expressions through biological samples to investigate whether microgravity conditions affect specific RNA expressions, potentially enhancing the human immune system's ability to combat certain diseases.

If they discover that upregulation or downregulation of certain genes causes our immune system to become stronger against cancers or some genetic diseases, “we can have therapeutic trips to space in the future,” Atasever explained.

Last but not least, a particularly exciting experiment is YUVA, suggested by Bilkent University's National Nanotechnology Research Center. This experiment will look into whether the human body can exhibit an adaptation response during the unusual conditions of space travel.

Specifically, researchers will examine Atasever’s extracellular vesicles, defined as structures that are shot out from the main wall of a cell which can be utilised to communicate with surrounding cells under stressful conditions, for any such adaptation mechanisms or signals sent out to surrounding cells when exposed to space conditions.

“If they can actually find an adaptation signal, in the long run, astronauts might get some adaptation therapeutics injected before even reaching space conditions to adapt their cells for an upcoming space flight.”

‘We will go to the Moon, twice’

Three years ago, Türkiye unveiled its National Space Programme led by TUA, outlining 10 goals that the country aspired to reach within the next 10 years. As part of this initiative, the country kicked off its astronauts and science mission in the 100th year of the Turkish Republic.

Gezeravci’s journey “was a huge success, a huge learning process for the Turkish Space Agency, for TUBITAK and for the space industry in Türkiye at large. So, as the first step, we gained a lot of knowledge through this mission,” Atasever said.

As he lifts off into space, the country has already set eyes on its next human space flight mission.

Catching up with Atasever on Friday to wish him well before his flight, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed that with the second astronaut, “our country will now prepare the groundwork for the third manned space mission.”

Türkiye’s space exploration ambitions go above and beyond human space flight. In his interview with TRT World, Atasever expressed that in the coming years, the country will establish technology development zones specialising in space technologies and will “go to the Moon, twice.”

“There is an increased interest towards the Moon and Türkiye wants to be part of that journey along with the rest of the world,” the astronaut said.

The initial mission is planned as a “hard landing,” during which Turkish scientists and researchers will test critical technologies, explore the moon from orbit, and make first contact with the lunar surface. A “soft landing” will then follow, with the prospect of landing a rover on the Moon.

“And from that point on, hopefully, we will use the Moon as a stepping stone to go even further and create new technologies, generate new solutions, especially and most importantly, for the benefit of the planet.”