'Turn station water into IV fluid': Indian-origin Nasa astronaut Anil Menon shares how ISS research could aid Mars missions and disaster relief

Indian-origin Nasa astronaut Anil Menon has shared details of a medical experiment aboard the International Space Station (ISS) that aims to convert the station's drinking water into sterile intravenous (IV) fluid—a technology that could support future Mars missions while also benefiting emergency healthcare and disaster relief operations on Earth.

In a post on X, Menon said he spent the day inside the Life Sciences Glovebox learning the IVGEN Mini experiment from fellow Nasa astronaut Jessica Meir, who is leading the research aboard the orbiting laboratory.

"The idea is simple to say and hard to do: turn the station's drinking water into sterile, medical-grade IV fluid," Menon wrote.

The experiment addresses a major challenge in long-duration human spaceflight. Conventional IV bags have a shelf life of about 16 months, making them unsuitable for future missions to Mars, which are expected to last several years. Transporting large quantities of medical saline is also impractical, as a seriously ill astronaut could require more than 100 litres of IV fluid during treatment.

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Instead of carrying ready-made saline, the IVGEN Mini system purifies the ISS's recycled drinking water to pharmaceutical standards before combining it with pre-measured sodium chloride to produce sterile normal saline whenever required.

"As a physician, this one hits close to home," Menon wrote, adding that if astronauts can manufacture IV fluids 250 miles above Earth, the same technology could one day be used in field hospitals, disaster zones and other remote locations where medical supply chains are disrupted.

The post comes just days after Menon arrived at the ISS as part of Nasa's SpaceX Crew-11 mission, marking his first journey into space. Soon after reaching the orbital laboratory, he shared a message describing the experience of seeing Earth from orbit and expressed excitement about contributing to scientific research during his mission.

Born in the United States to Indian and Ukrainian parents, Menon is a physician, mechanical engineer and former flight surgeon who has worked with both Nasa and SpaceX. Before becoming an astronaut, he played a key role in supporting commercial human spaceflight missions and emergency medicine.