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Two ESA facilities will be available for plant research and other biological experiments on the International Space Station: the European Modular Cultivation System (EMCS) in the US “Destiny” Module and BIOLAB in the European “Columbus” Laboratory. Both facilities use standard experiment containers, mounted on centrifuges and connected to life support systems, allowing telescience-controlled acceleration studies (0.001×g up to 2.0×g) and continuation of microgravity research on protoplasts, callus cultures, algae, fungi and seedlings, as earlier flown on Biorack, and new experiments with larger specimens of fungi, mosses and vascular plants.

The MELISSA (Microbial Ecological LIfe Support System Alternative) project has been set up to be a model for the studies on ecological life support systems for long term space missions. The compartmentalisation of the loop, the choice of the micro-organisms and the axenic conditions have been selected in order to simplify the behaviour of this artificial ecosystem and allow a deterministic and engineering approach. In this framework the MELISSA project has now been running since beginning 1989. In this paper we present the general approach of the study, the scientific results obtained on each independent compartment (mass balance, growth kinetics, limitations, compound conversions,..), the tests of toxicity already performed between some compartments and their effect on the growth kinetics. The technical results on instrumentation and control aspects, and the current status of the ESA/ESTEC hardware are also reviewed.