Virgin Galactic to study menstruation in space. What is 'Operation Period?'

• The mission, called "Operation Period," will be the first of its kind, according to the company.
• Two women from the nonprofit Operation Period will lead the research on the flight.
• The findings could impact future long-duration spaceflights and healthcare on Earth.

Throughout the course of human spaceflight, astronauts have conducted research on anything from muscle atrophy in microgravity to the psychological effects of long-duration missions.

But even though more than 100 women have traveled beyond Earth's gravity by now, no one has ever tried to study a physiological process that half the population experiences: menstruation.

That's according to Virgin Galactic, a commercial aerospace company specializing in suborbital flights to space. Now, as Virgin Galactic prepares to resume commercial operations in 2026, the company wants to change that.

Founded by billionaire Richard Branson, Virgin Galactic has revealed plans for a research spaceflight in 2027 focused on better understanding whether and how microgravity and space travel can influence menstrual cycles and women's hormonal health. Led by two women behind a nonprofit focused on women's reproductive health, the mission "represents a landmark moment at the intersection of commercial spaceflight, women’s health and scientific innovation," Virgin Galactic said in a statement.

Here's everything to know about the upcoming mission, including the implications it could have for not only future astronauts but also for health care on Earth.

What is Virgin Galactic? What to know about Richard Branson's company

Virgin Galactic is an aerospace and space travel company that is part of British billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Group conglomerate.

Like its competitor Blue Origin, founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, Virgin Galactic specializes in carrying paying customers on brief flights to the edge of space. The market is one Blue Origin recently took a hiatus from as it turns its focus to developing a lunar lander for NASA's Artemis moon missions.

A tenant of Spaceport America in New Mexico, Virgin Galactic has flown 32 people to space across 12 missions.

Virgin Galactic to test menstruation in space

Virgin Galactic has announced a spaceflight planned for 2027 the company claims will be the first research mission to study menstruation in microgravity.

An exact target date for the flight, known as Operation Period, has not been announced. Virgin Galactic said in a news release May 28 that the flight would be used to study the menstrual cycle beyond Earth in suborbital space.

Earlier Virgin Galactic missions have lasted more than an hour from takeoff to touchdown, but passengers typically have only a few minutes to see Earth from space while also experiencing a few minutes of weightlessness. That suggests the crew of the planned mission won't have long to do research, which Virgin Galactic said it would focus on "menstrual fluid dynamics and menstrual product performance."

Results from the mission could have implications for long-duration spaceflight as well as for the broader medical community, according to Virgin Galactic. "Operation Period" is more officially dubbed OP-01, which suggests future missions under the banner are in the works.

“At Virgin Galactic, we are committed to enabling human-tended research that expands the scope of what can be studied in space,” Amber Favaregh, Virgin Galactic's director of system analysis and research, said in a statement.

Who is selected for the crew of Operation Period?

Manju Bangalore, founder of Operation Period, a nonprofit organization focused on reproductive health research and advocacy, will fly on the mission with aerospace engineer and pilot Priya Abiram, director of research at the nonprofit.

The two are expected to become the youngest South Asian women who have traveled to space, according to Virgin Galactic.

"I have dreamed about this since I was 4 years old and I made a promise to myself I'd make it happen before I turned 30," Bangalore, 28, a reproductive health scientist, said in a video on Instagram. "This dream has been in motion for so long."

Abiram, 22, added in her own post on Instagram that in her professional life, she has "spent every single hour working toward becoming an astronaut."

Virgin Galactic to resume space tourism program in 2026

The mission would come on the heels of Virgin Galactic returning to flight for the first time in more than two years.

The company recently shared a first look at its new spaceplane that later in 2026 is expected to begin taking paying customers to the edge of space.

Developed to be reused for faster turnaround time between missions, the vehicle is an upgraded design from Virgin Galactic, according to the company's most recent financial report. Officially dubbed SpaceShip, the spaceplane has undergone assembly and ground tests at the company's factory in Arizona as Virgin Galactic prepares to send it to Spaceport America this summer so flight tests can begin.

Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity vehicle returns to flight

Capable of flying up to eight missions a month, SpaceShip can seat six passengers and would replace the VSS Unity spaceplane, according to Virgin Galactic.

But Virgin Galactic recently brought Unity out of retirement.

The spaceplane flew over New Mexico May 27 on what Virgin Galactic called a "glide flight." The flight allowed for Virgin Galactic pilots to train and for ground teams to "build operational readiness" ahead of tests with the SpaceShip prototype, the company said in a news release.

Spaceflights led by Virgin Galactic resemble a traditional commercial aircraft takeoff on a runway as the company deploys an air-launch strategy to get its vehicles to the edge of space.

The VMS Eve, what's known as the mothership, is a four-engine dual-fuselage jet carrier aircraft that carries spaceplane to what Virgin Galactic refers to as "release altitude." There, the VSS Unity separates from the aircraft to travel to an altitude of about 54 – within range of what the U.S. military and NASA define as the beginning of space – before landing on a runway.

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected]