Scientists Will Soon Grow Weed In Space, To Study Marijuana's Medicinal Use In Zero Gravity

Researchers studying marijuana and its possible applications in medicine might find their data coming from a very strange place.

As it turns out, there's soon going to be a ¡°weed pod¡± aboard the International Space Station, dedicated solely to the trippy plant.

Images courtesy: Space Tango

A Kentucky-based startup named Space Tango is setting up a clean room laboratory aboard the ISS. It's modules are special because, while they adhere to scientific standards of keeping out any and all contaminants, they¡¯re also contained in transparent boxes the size of a microwave.

These ¡°CubeLab¡± modules, as Space Tango calls them, allow scientists to conduct experiments in microgravity on board the iSS, without taking up too much of the precious little room available. Some companies already use these to grow and study crops in a zero-g environment. But the startup is now preparing to conduct its own research in how cannabis growth is affected by zero gravity.

Among other things, the study is aimed at improving how hemp (the fiber and seed part of the Cannabis plant) is cultivated for its use in medicine. Space Tango already has two of these micro-labs on board the ISS, and sees experimental payloads launched to it, for both company and university research, at least six times a year.

The idea is that perhaps growing these plants in space may help them understand whether the lack of gravity benefits the growth of certain more desirable strains. Perhaps, they say, the lack of gravity as a stressor may help the plants adapt in ways that are more beneficial to the medical compounds they¡¯re used in.