Purdue University has announced a partnership with Virgin Galactic for a dedicated suborbital research flight scheduled for 2027. The mission, named "Purdue 1," will be the first of its kind, sending a university-led crew of researchers and alumni into space to conduct experiments.
The flight will utilize Virgin Galactic's next-generation Delta-class spaceplane and will carry a professor, a graduate student, and three alumni. This initiative marks a significant step in making space research more accessible to academic institutions.
Key Takeaways
- Purdue University will conduct a dedicated suborbital research flight with Virgin Galactic in 2027.
- The mission, "Purdue 1," is the first dedicated crewed suborbital research mission organized by a university.
- The crew will include Professor Steven Collicott, graduate student Abigail Mizzi, and three Purdue alumni.
- Research will focus on the behavior of fluids in a microgravity environment.
- The mission will fly on Virgin Galactic's next-generation six-passenger spaceplane.
A New Frontier for University Research
Purdue University is set to break new ground in academic research by chartering a complete suborbital spaceflight. The announcement, made on September 23, details the "Purdue 1" mission, which aims to leverage commercial space travel for scientific and educational purposes.
During the announcement event, Purdue President Mung Chiang highlighted the university's ambition. "We have amazing faculty, students and alums, who are going to run experiments, do their research and innovation, while doing teaching and learning, all while they’re in space," he said.
"Why should a university be confined to the surly bonds of gravity here on Earth?" - Mung Chiang, President of Purdue University
This mission represents a shift from individual researchers securing seats on commercial flights to an entire institution dedicating a flight to its academic goals. The flight will accommodate five human participants and a suite of research payloads, utilizing all six seats available on the spacecraft.
A University First
While individual researchers have flown on commercial suborbital flights before—such as Alan Stern and Kellie Gerardi on Virgin Galactic in 2023 and Rob Ferl on Blue Origin in 2024—the Purdue 1 mission is unique. It is the first time a university has chartered an entire crewed flight specifically for its own research and personnel, signaling a new model for academic access to space.
The Crew and Their Mission
The five-person crew for the Purdue 1 flight is composed entirely of individuals with ties to the university, blending experienced faculty with the next generation of researchers and supportive alumni.
Faculty and Student Researchers
The mission will be led by Steven Collicott, a professor of aerospace engineering at Purdue. Collicott is a long-time advocate for commercial suborbital research and has been preparing for this opportunity for years. In 2021, he received a grant from NASA’s Flight Opportunities program to study fluid behavior in microgravity on a future Virgin Galactic flight.
"What we are talking about here today really is the result of a good idea growing into a better idea and into an even larger, even cooler, astounding commitment," Collicott stated, reflecting on the journey to this point.
Joining him will be Purdue graduate student Abigail Mizzi, who will also conduct research on fluid dynamics. Her participation is being funded through a university-led fundraising campaign with a goal of $1 million.
Mizzi emphasized the mission's broader impact: "[The flight] will mark a change in how the aerospace industry community conducts research and space flight for the future, opening the doors for all the next students and researchers to extend beyond their laboratories here on Earth and go into space."
Alumni Participation and Support
Three seats on the flight are reserved for Purdue alumni, who will self-fund their participation. This model helps make the mission financially viable while engaging the university's extensive network of graduates.
One of the alumni flyers is Jason Williamson, senior vice president at the engineering firm Dunaway. Williamson, who had already signed up for Virgin Galactic's prospective customer program, learned of the university's involvement and saw a unique opportunity to connect his passion for space with his alma mater.
Purdue 1 Crew Composition
- Mission Lead: Professor Steven Collicott
- Student Researcher: Abigail Mizzi
- Alumni Participant 1: Jason Williamson
- Alumni Participant 2: An unnamed alumna
- Alumni Participant 3: One seat remains open
- Sixth Seat: Dedicated to research payloads
Purdue has confirmed that a second, unnamed alumna has also secured a seat. The search for the third and final alumni participant is ongoing.
The Science Aboard Purdue 1
The primary scientific objective of the Purdue 1 mission is to study the behavior of fluids in microgravity. This research has significant implications for a wide range of space-based systems, including life support, propulsion, and thermal management, where understanding how liquids move without gravity is critical.
The few minutes of weightlessness during a suborbital flight provide a valuable, if brief, window for experimentation. Professor Collicott acknowledged the intense pace required to complete the research tasks.
"I think the science leading the way in science is going to be pretty intensely exciting, and things happen pretty quick." - Steven Collicott, Purdue Professor
He compared the experience to the final, high-pressure seconds of a basketball game. The experiments are designed to be conducted quickly and efficiently. "Working with the liquids, there’s going to be periods where the liquid motion needs to settle out and decay," he explained. "That’s the only chance I’ll get to look out the windows. I look forward to that."
Virgin Galactic's Vision for Research
For Virgin Galactic, the Purdue 1 mission is a key demonstration of its platform's scientific capabilities. The company's Delta-class spaceplanes, currently in development, are designed to fly more frequently and carry more passengers than the previous SpaceShipTwo model, opening up new possibilities for research and tourism.
Mike Moses, President of Spaceline at Virgin Galactic and a Purdue alumnus himself, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership. "The Purdue 1 mission set for 2027 is exactly what we envisioned when we built our spaceflight system and research platform," he said.
Moses added that the mission puts "scientists, engineers and students at the heart of discovery, enabling them to conduct and interact with human-tended experiments in suborbital space." He concluded, "This mission is proof that space is now an accessible frontier."
The collaboration highlights a growing trend where commercial space companies are providing essential platforms for scientific institutions, democratizing access to space and accelerating the pace of discovery beyond Earth's atmosphere.