Overview

This unit aims to provide an introduction and overview of the underlying principles and concepts in a variety of space science & microgravity research topics as they relate to Human Space Travel, Space Exploration and Research and other relevant topics.

Requisites

Teaching periods
Location
Start and end dates
Last self-enrolment date
Census date
Last withdraw without fail date
Results released date
Semester 1
Location
Hawthorn
Start and end dates
02-March-2026
31-May-2026
Last self-enrolment date
15-March-2026
Census date
31-March-2026
Last withdraw without fail date
21-April-2026
Results released date
07-July-2026

Unit learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:

  1. Discuss the basic principles involved in microgravity environments
  2. Describe using appropriate terminology practical applications of the concepts in microgravity environments
  3. Describe important considerations related to research and/or operations in microgravity
  4. Recognise and describe the differences in experimental outcomes between experiments conducted in space and experiments on Earth
  5. Apply concepts to real-world applications and predict the behaviour of space research conducted in microgravity

Teaching methods

Hawthorn

Type Hours per week Number of weeks Total (number of hours)
On-campus
Class		1.00 12 weeks 12
Online
Learning activities		4.00 12 weeks 48
Unspecified Activities
Independent Learning		7.50 12 weeks 90
TOTAL150

Assessment

Type Task Weighting ULO's
Online DiscussionIndividual 20 - 40% 1,2,3,4,5 
Online QuizIndividual 30 - 50% 1,2,3,4,5 
ReportIndividual 20 - 40% 1,2,3,4,5 

Content

This unit provides an introduction to Microgravity research theories and methods.  Topics covered in this unit include:

  • Introduction to Microgravity research
  • Human Performance in Space
  • Space Medicine
  • Space Biotechnology.

Study resources

Reading materials

A list of reading materials and/or required textbooks will be available in the Unit Outline on Canvas.