BioSentinel CubeSat probes deep-space radiation with yeast; mission continues after three years

NASA’s BioSentinel mission uses a small CubeSat laboratory to study how deep-space radiation affects living cells. Built and led by NASA Ames, the six-unit, cereal box-sized spacecraft carries yeast samples and a miniature biotechnology lab called the BioSensor to measure radiation effects beyond Earth’s magnetic shield.

BioSentinel launched as one of 10 CubeSats aboard Artemis I on Nov. 16, 2022, flew past the Moon and entered a solar orbit. Science operations in deep space began Dec. 5, 2022. The mission marked two years of continuous radiation observations on Nov. 16, 2024 and three years on Nov.

16, 2025, by which time the spacecraft had traveled more than 48 million miles from Earth. The experiment activated two strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae at different times during the mission: a wild-type strain and a strain deficient in DNA repair. Comparing their responses to deep-space radiation helps researchers assess risks to human DNA and inform mitigation strategies for long-duration exploration.

During the initial science phase (Dec. 2022–Apr. 2023) the team operated four two-week experiments but did not observe yeast growth. Investigators concluded the lack of growth was likely due to the yeast expiring after extended prelaunch storage, not radiation. Despite that setback, BioSentinel’s onboard radiation detector continues to collect unique deep-space particle and dose data.

Key Topics

Science, Biosentinel, Cubesat, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Nasa Ames, Artemis I