'Them space drugs cooked real good:' Varda Space just made an HIV medicine in Earth orbit

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Here's why it's a big deal.

view from on board a small space capsule showing sparks flying as it reenters earth's atmosphere
Varda Space Industries' first off-Earth manufacturing capsule captured this fiery view during its reentry to Earth's atmosphere on Feb. 21, 2024. (Image credit: Varda Space Industries)

On Feb. 21, after some seven months in space, Varda Space Industries' W-1 capsule successfully returned to Earth, carrying with it a unique payload: the HIV/AIDS medication ritonavir. 

Varda Space seeks to autonomously manufacture pharmaceuticals in microgravity, a strategy that could ultimately reduce the cost of life-saving drugs — and, according to a new preprint paper, the company is one step closer to achieving that goal.

The W-1 mission sought to test the feasibility of making therapeutics in space, testing Varda's hardware off Earth for the first time. During its time in orbit, the W-1 capsule successfully crystalized the metastable Form III of the antiviral drug ritonavir, which then survived its return to Earth. The space-processed ritonavir has since been analyzed, and per an X post by Varda Space cofounder Delian Asparouhov, "[t]hem space drugs cooked real good."

Related: See Varda Space's private in-space manufacturing capsule's historic return to Earth in photos

The mission's data, now published in the preprint paper, also provides crucial information about the effects of spaceflight and reentry — such as vibration, acceleration, radiation and temperature — on the pharmaceutical-production process. 

"By providing a detailed experimental dataset centered on survivability, we pave the way for the future of in-space processing of medicines that enable the development of novel drug products on Earth and benefit long-duration human exploration initiatives," states the paper's abstract.

Varda Space's off-Earth manufacturing capsule is evaluated by recovery personnel as it sits on the desert floor of the Utah Test and Training Range on Feb. 21, 2024. (Image credit: Varda Space/John Kraus)
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While pharmaceuticals have been processed in microgravity on parabolic flights and the International Space Station, Varda Space's method aims to be more efficient and cost-effective, using uncrewed capsules that serve dual purposes as a mini-factory and a reentry vehicle. 

The company now hopes to inspire others to consider the viability of space-processed pharmaceuticals. "Together with our hypergravity platform, Varda’s rapidly advancing the landscape for drug development using microgravity," wrote Varda Space in a thread on X. "Our mission is to now enable cost-effective high-cadence access to enable next-generation therapeutics."

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Stefanie Waldek
Stefanie Waldek
Contributing writer

Space.com contributing writer Stefanie Waldek is a self-taught space nerd and aviation geek who is passionate about all things spaceflight and astronomy. With a background in travel and design journalism, as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree from New York University, she specializes in the budding space tourism industry and Earth-based astrotourism. In her free time, you can find her watching rocket launches or looking up at the stars, wondering what is out there. Learn more about her work at www.stefaniewaldek.com.

6 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Meteoric Marmot
    This is obviously a high-value product. I wonder what security measures they plan to incorporate to prevent the capsule being snatched during the parachute descent phase?
    Reply
  • billslugg
    The capsules will land at Dugway Proving Ground and Utah Test and Training Range, both US military reservations. They have tight security.
    Reply
  • Unclear Engineer
    It would be a lot more educational if this article had provided some info about the reasons that making drugs in microgravity (orbit) is worth all the trouble and expense.
    Reply
  • Meteoric Marmot
    billslugg said:
    The capsules will land at Dugway Proving Ground and Utah Test and Training Range, both US military reservations. They have tight security.
    I'm sure the ground security is tight. What I was wondering about is if they have any planned security during the descent phase where snagging the parachute using an aircraft is a proven technique for airborne recovery of returning capsules.
    Reply
  • Unclear Engineer
    I would expect air security would be even better than ground security at a military test range.
    Reply
  • billslugg
    Flying an airplane anywhere near a military installation without a transponder that they recognize is asking for big trouble. They'd be on you in a heartbeat. You would be known as an unidentified incoming threat, a "bogie". They give them a warning and then shoot them down if they don't like them. They have all certain rules but I can tell you, you would not get anywhere near that incoming capsule.
    Reply