India’s human spaceflight programme is moving from rocket engineering into a tougher question: what happens to the human body when body weight almost disappears in orbit? On October 13, 2026, reports said a microgravity simulation laboratory is planned at either PGIMER Chandigarh or IIT Ropar. A specialised bed has already been procured for experiments on healthy volunteers, with researchers looking at biological changes such as gut microbes and astronaut nutrition.
The timing is important. The government’s official Gaganyaan roadmap says the first uncrewed mission carrying Vyommitra is targeted for Q4 2026, while the first crewed mission is targeted for 2027. The proposed facility should therefore be viewed as part of India’s wider space-medicine preparation before the crewed Gaganyaan phase.
Key Highlights
- Microgravity is not the complete absence of gravity; astronauts appear weightless because spacecraft and crew are continuously falling around Earth together.
- The proposed PGIMER-IIT Ropar facility will simulate selected microgravity effects on healthy volunteers.
- Shubhanshu Shukla completed seven Indian microgravity experiments on the ISS in 2025.
- ISRO is expanding this research through IMEx-2026 and the future Bharatiya Antariksh Station.
What Microgravity Actually Means Inside A Spacecraft
The phrase “zero gravity” is convenient, but scientifically misleading. NASA’s microgravity explanation notes that gravity remains strong in low-Earth orbit. Astronauts float because the spacecraft, people and objects inside it are in continuous free fall around Earth at the same time.
That condition changes daily biology. Muscles no longer work against body weight in the usual way, fluids redistribute and balance systems receive unfamiliar signals. Researchers also watch how food, microbes, cells and plants behave.
Ground facilities cannot recreate long orbital free fall. Instead, they reproduce selected effects through controlled methods. The proposed facility is expected to use a specialised bed so volunteers can be studied under simulated space conditions. It is therefore a microgravity simulation lab, not a room where Earth’s gravity is switched off.
Why India Wants Its Own Microgravity Research Base Now
PGIMER researchers are already working on ISRO-supported studies involving acid-base homeostasis and gut microbiota. A dedicated facility could allow repeated sampling on Earth, where researchers can adjust protocols without waiting for a spaceflight slot. The Space Med Talks session drew more than 500 registrations from students and researchers across India.
- Research focus: gut-microbe changes could help scientists examine how astronaut diets should be designed.
- Human focus: volunteers can be monitored repeatedly before selected ideas move into flight experiments.
- Mission focus: Indian data can strengthen nutrition, recovery and health-monitoring protocols for future crews.
This fits ISRO’s Indian Microgravity Experiments programme, IMEx-2026. Universities, national laboratories, start-ups and industry were invited to develop experiments in space biology, pharmacology, materials science, fluid physics, agriculture and in-space manufacturing.
What Shubhanshu Shukla’s ISS Mission Already Taught India
India is not starting from zero. During Axiom-4 in 2025, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla spent 18 days in space and completed seven Indian microgravity experiments under ISRO coordination. They covered tardigrades, muscle regeneration, methi and moong sprouting, cyanobacteria, microalgae, crop seeds and cognitive-display testing.
That mission gave Indian researchers actual orbital data. It also showed why terrestrial facilities remain useful. Flight opportunities are scarce, while Earth-based simulations can screen ideas, establish baselines and identify weak protocols before payload space is used.
ISRO reinforced this approach in July 2026 when more than 270 delegates joined its first National Workshop on Microgravity Research in Bengaluru.
- ISS gives India: true orbital exposure and flight data.
- Ground labs give India: repetition, larger volunteer studies and faster testing.
- Together they give India: a research pipeline instead of one-off experiments.
How The Lab Connects Gaganyaan To India’s Space Station Plans
The immediate headline is Gaganyaan, but the longer target is the Bharatiya Antariksh Station. Government plans call for the first BAS module by 2028 and a five-module station operational by 2035. Microgravity research in life sciences, pharmaceuticals, materials and manufacturing is expected to be a major use of that station.
That makes the proposed PGIMER-IIT Ropar facility more than a pre-flight medical project. India needs researchers, protocols and equipment ready before regular orbital laboratory access expands. A ground base can help build that capacity while Gaganyaan proves launch, life-support, recovery and crew-safety systems.
Why do astronauts float if gravity still exists in space?
They float because the spacecraft and everything inside it are falling around Earth together, creating apparent weightlessness even though Earth’s gravity remains strongly present there.
Where could India’s new microgravity simulation lab be built?
Current reports say the facility is planned at either PGIMER Chandigarh or IIT Ropar, with the final location tied to the proposed research setup itself.
What will researchers study in the proposed facility?
Researchers plan to examine biological responses under simulated space conditions, including gut-microbe changes, and explore nutrition approaches designed specifically for Indian astronauts on future missions.
Has India already conducted microgravity experiments in space?
Yes. Shubhanshu Shukla completed seven Indian microgravity experiments aboard the International Space Station during Axiom-4 in 2025, covering biology, crops and human performance research work.
When is the first crewed Gaganyaan mission expected?
Government updates currently target the first uncrewed Gaganyaan mission for Q4 2026, followed by additional uncrewed flights and the first crewed mission during 2027 itself.
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