Overview
- Under ESA’s Terrae Novae programme, HOBI-WAN teams Solar Foods with OHB System AG to develop and validate Solein production for space use.
- The initial eight-month effort focuses on a ground-based science model, followed by manufacturing, safety testing and flight hardware for a potential ISS experiment.
- Solein is a single-cell protein made via gas fermentation using hydrogen, carbon dioxide and microbes, with urea from astronaut urine proposed as the nitrogen source in orbit.
- Engineers must prove the process in microgravity, where gases and liquids behave differently, and meet strict safety requirements for handling hydrogen and oxygen.
- ESA frames the capability as key to mission autonomy and astronaut well-being, while Solar Foods targets operational use with Solein as a staple protein by 2035.