Results may help improve fire prevention and control on spacecraft and on Earth. Mir experiments will explore how fluids slosh in containers and how they will behave in containers of different shapes. Knowledge of fluid flows in microgravity is important for designing fuel, water and oxygen systems on spacecraft. Several experiments on Mir will explore gravity's effect on how metals solidify. Through these experiments, scientists will learn to better control the formation of metal crystals to produce metals with more desirable properties.
Scientists seek to understand the molecular structure of proteins and viruses.
This knowledge helps in designing disease-fighting drugs. On Earth, gravity interferes with the growth of the large protein and virus crystals needed for these molecular studies. A bioreactor is a facility used for growing living cells. Using the bioreactor in microgravity should enhance this three-dimensional growth. The first sample to be grown in the bioreactor on Mir will be cartilage tissue.