Hungarian astronaut and researcher Tibor Kapu answered questions from high school students live from the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday. The discussion was held at the HUNIVERZUM Visitor Center in Budapest, organized with the participation of Orsolya Ferencz, Ministerial Commissioner for Space Research and head of the HUNOR program, according to Hungary’s M1 news channel.
The students, winners of the National Secondary School Academic Competition (OKTV), had the chance to ask Tibor Kapu about topics such as the effects of weightlessness, chemical experiments in space, the ISS orbit correction system, and how the immune system functions in space.
Orsolya Ferencz emphasized that thanks to the experiments conducted by the Hungarian astronaut aboard the ISS, domestic universities, research groups, and companies are given the opportunity to be represented in space and carry out high-tech research. She added:
“This mission is especially important for younger generations, as our goal is to spark interest in space sciences and to strengthen engagement in STEM fields—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—across Hungary.”
The Ministerial Commissioner stated that the HUNOR program once again proves Hungary’s ability to become a key player in rapidly evolving industries of the 21st century. She also highlighted the importance of involving OKTV winners in the discussion, calling them “the foundation of Hungary’s future scientific life.”
Responding to a question about weightlessness, Tibor Kapu said that floating in zero gravity and adapting to the freedom of movement in all directions is initially unusual. However, with time, one learns to recognize certain patterns and adjust quickly—most people get used to it within a day.
When asked about chemistry’s role in the mission, he explained that while most of the experiments focus on biology and physics, there have been results in crystallography. He mentioned that during a previous mission supported by the HUNOR program, proteins were crystallized in space, which could benefit pharmaceutical manufacturing.
He also talked about the various animal and plant species that have been sent to the ISS. He showed wheat and radish plants grown in orbit, and explained another experiment involving fruit flies currently growing in a container on board—their DNA will be studied later. Other more exotic species, like scorpions, fish, and previously spiders, have also been part of experiments on the ISS.
Answering a question about oxygen production in space, Kapu explained that water is split using electrolysis to generate oxygen.
“Out here in space, nothing necessary for human life is naturally available—no oxygen, no water. Really, sunlight is the only thing we can count on. So everything we need to survive must either be produced here or brought up from Earth,”
he said.
