China launches in-orbit experiment projects in space hospital quest

SHENZHEN, 2 April (BelTA - Xinhua) - Five medical research projects aimed at establishing the world's first space hospital, proposed by a university in south China's innovation hub Shenzhen, were transported to space aboard a test spacecraft. These projects will complete in-orbit experiments and tests over the next three years.

The test vehicle features 27 projects with a total payload of 1.02 tonnes and will conduct in-orbit tests at altitudes ranging from 200 to 600 kilometers.

The idea of a future space hospital was proposed by the Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology (SUAT), which in July 2025 signed an agreement with the Innovation Academy for Microsatellites of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IAMCAS) to jointly build the hospital.

The initiative aims to enhance astronaut health protection and improve human health, and expand capabilities for in-orbit medical monitoring and life support systems, with focuses on advanced disease prevention and treatment.

The endeavor will integrate multiple disciplines including aerospace, medicine and biology, conduct cutting-edge research in space life and health support, and prepare health safeguards for non-astronaut space travel and interplanetary exploration.

Xu Zhiming, executive director of SUAT's Future Medicine Center and dean of the Faculty of Clinical Medicine, was the first to propose this vision. According to Xu, the construction of the future space hospital will follow a three-step approach.

First, cutting-edge medical projects were adapted for aerospace engineering and placed aboard the Qingzhou cargo spacecraft, and this will be followed by in-orbit experiments and tests. After this a space hospital outpost will be established to conduct space emergency rescue and space scientific research.

In the next step, medical modules for the future space hospital will be constructed on the moon or planets to explore health protection for lunar landing and space travel.

The in-orbit projects include use of a contact-type UV non-invasive phototherapy device developed by Gu Ying, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and director of SUAT's Future Medicine Center.

The phototherapy device can simulate specific wavelengths in sunlight that promote vitamin D synthesis in the human body. Regular use by astronauts aboard space stations or deep-space spacecraft can safely and efficiently maintain vitamin D levels in the body, preventing vitamin D deficiency.

In microgravity environments, reduced skeletal loading leads to rapid bone density loss at a rate of about 1 percent to 2 percent per month. Maintaining appropriate vitamin D levels through this device can directly support calcium metabolism, and work with space exercise and pharmaceutical interventions to form a more comprehensive bone health protection system.

Also aboard the cargo spacecraft is a plasma therapeutic device for refractory wounds, jointly developed by Xu Zhiming and Chen Zhitong from the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Xu said that in the microgravity environment of space, changes in human body fluid distribution and abnormal blood circulation can significantly slow wound healing and make wounds prone to becoming chronic.

The plasma therapeutic device can directly promote cell proliferation and collagen synthesis by releasing reactive oxygen and nitrogen particles, accelerating tissue regeneration to counteract healing delays caused by microgravity.

The device does not require liquid or gel media, as the plasma acts on wounds in gas form, avoiding liquid splashing or contamination of the cabin environment in weightless conditions. The device can also disinfect equipment surfaces such as medical tools and wearable device interfaces, achieving multi-functional use in one machine.

Xu said they will continue to utilize Shenzhou spacecraft for in-orbit experiments and tests to serve four major scenarios, namely space stations, lunar landings, Mars exploration and future space travel, and extend space medical achievements from space applications to civilian benefits.

SUAT Party secretary Zhu Dijian noted that the health challenges astronauts face in space are the university's key focus. The SUAT brings together strengths in medical devices, biomedicine, innovative medical technology and aerospace technology from institutions such as the IAMCAS, with the aim of building a space medical platform for the future.