1995
Space milestones
BIOBOX flies and Kayser becomes independent
BIOBOX-2 flies aboard Foton-10. In the same year, Valfredo Zolesi acquires the remaining stake in the company from the German partner, and Kayser Italia becomes fully independent. Growth in the space sector is thus accompanied by a change in ownership that strengthens the company’s independence and defines its direction.
51 Pegasi b is discovered
51 Pegasi b is identified, the first extrasolar planet discovered orbiting a Sun-like star. The discovery opens a new phase in exoplanet research.
Shuttle and Mir meet
In June, the first docking takes place between the American Shuttle and the Mir station. The encounter marks a key milestone in space cooperation between the United States and Russia and paves the way for the future International Space Station.
Missions & Payloads
FOTON 10
Orbital mission with a recoverable capsule, dedicated to microgravity research. It hosts European cell biology experiments inside the BIOBOX-2 incubator.
BIOBOX 2
BIOBOX-2 is an automatic incubator for cell biology experiments in microgravity, developed as part of ESA’s BIOBOX programme. It maintains samples in a temperature-controlled environment between approximately 6 and 37 °C, has telemetry and telecommand capabilities and can accommodate up to 24 experimental containers. An internal centrifuge generates an acceleration of 1 g, allowing samples exposed to microgravity to be compared, during the same flight, with control samples maintained under conditions equivalent to Earth’s gravity.