Shrimp in space: the student-built SCAMPI ecosystem
The full reading behind my Short: a sealed world of shrimp, algae and microbes, built by students, is on its way to the International Space Station.
The short version
On 13 October 2026 at 12:33 CEST (11:33 UK time), the student-built SCAMPI experiment launched to the International Space Station (ISS) on SpaceX's CRS-35 cargo mission [1]. It was developed through the ESA Academy Experiments Programme [1].
SCAMPI is a closed aquatic ecosystem: shrimp, algae and microbial populations living in a sealed habitat, designed to study how an ecological system works when it is removed from Earth's gravity [1].
A late-load payload
Because it carries living organisms, SCAMPI is a so-called "late-load payload" [1]. In the days before launch, the student team, supervised by ESA's Payload Integration Manager, refreshed the sealed ecosystem at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, inspected the aquaria and checked the health of the biological components, before handing it to NASA for integration onto the launcher [1].
On the ISS, an astronaut will install it in the ICE Cubes Facility, a commercial service run by Space Applications Services, inside the European Columbus module [1].
Watch the Short
About this page
The Short uses an ESA image of the ICE Cubes Facility (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO), NASA public-domain images of the ISS and the Columbus module, a 2015 SpaceX Falcon 9 launch photo (CC0; it is not the CRS-35 launch), and my own animations. The shrimp tanks are illustrations, not real footage. This page is general science news.
The science
- In orbit. Young researchers and students will monitor how the ecosystem evolves and collect data on how microgravity affects the interactions between its living and non-living parts [1].
- Back on Earth. After its campaign, the payload is expected to return to Earth. Students will run genetic and biological analyses and compare the flight samples with their ground-based counterparts [1].
- Why it matters. ESA says closed ecological systems "could one day play a key role in supporting astronauts on long-duration missions beyond low Earth orbit", feeding into research on future life-support systems for the Moon, Mars and beyond [1].
- What it is not: a small student experiment, not a working life-support system. Its value is in the data and what it teaches about how ecosystems behave in space.
Who built it
- Students from Europe and the US. 51 university students took the project from proposal to a flight-ready experiment, through reviews, tests and qualification [1].
- The consortium. Led by Politecnico di Torino and École Polytechnique, with The Spring Institute for Forests on the Moon, ISAE-SUPAERO, IPSA, École d'Ingénieurs de PURPAN, Utrecht University and TU Delft, working with the ESA Education Programme and Space Applications Services [1].
- In their words. Prof. Sabrina Corpino (Polytechnic University of Turin): "This has been an invaluable learning experience, which will also provide new insights to support the development of future bioregenerative life support systems for human space exploration missions." [1]
Full narration (transcript)
Fifty-one students just launched a sealed world of shrimp into space. Their experiment, SCAMPI, launched this week, riding on SpaceX's CRS-35 mission to the space station. Inside is a closed aquatic ecosystem: shrimp, algae and microbes, living together in a sealed habitat. Students from Europe and the United States designed, built and tested it, with the European Space Agency. Because the shrimp are alive, the team refreshed the ecosystem in Florida, in the days before launch. There, an astronaut will install it in the ICE Cubes Facility, in Europe's Columbus module. Students will then track how microgravity affects the way the living and non-living parts interact. Afterwards, it should return to Earth for genetic tests, compared with samples kept on the ground. Why does it matter? Closed ecosystems like this could one day help support astronauts on long missions to the Moon and Mars.
Sources
- [1] ESA (13 Oct 2026). "Student-built SCAMPI experiment launches to the International Space Station." esa.int
- [2] Images: "ICE Cubes facility", ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO, cropped, zoomed and overlaid with text (file) · "Interior Columbus module", NASA, public domain (file) · "The station pictured from the SpaceX Crew Dragon 5", NASA, public domain (file) · "Launch of Falcon 9 carrying CRS-6 Dragon", SpaceX, CC0 (file)
Credits
ICE Cubes image: ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (modified). ISS and Columbus: NASA. Falcon 9: SpaceX (CC0). Animations: my own illustrations, not endorsed by ESA, NASA or SpaceX.