On December 4, 2018 (October 27, 2018 in the lunar calendar), humans 3D printed biological organs in space for the first time. Organaut bioprinter According to a recent report by the Russian news agency Today, Russian medical company Invitro said that Russian astronauts used a 3D bioprinter on the International Space Station to manage to print the thyroid gland of experimental mice under zero gravity. The company said it may even be expected to print human organs in the future to promote the development of medical research. The breakthrough 3D printing device called Organaut was sent to the International Space Station on the 3rd by the Soyuz MS-11 spacecraft on the Expedition 58 mission. The printer was built by Invitro's subsidiary 3D Bioprinting Solutions. Invitro then received a set of photos from the International Space Station that showed how the rat thyroid gland was printed. According to reports, Russian astronaut Kononenko on the space station began the work of printing biological organs in space for the first time in human history at 17:00 Moscow time on December 4, 2018 (22:00 Beijing time on the 4th). Relevant experimental results will return to Earth later in December and will be announced in February 2019. Russia has also become the first country in the world to print biological organs in space. Invitro said that in zero-gravity environments, printed organs and tissues mature faster and more efficiently than on Earth, and the latest research may pave the way for printing human organs on the International Space Station. When asked whether human organs would soon be 3D printed on the International Space Station, Invitro CEO Alexander Ostrovsky said: "Nothing is impossible, the only issue is the cost. We are currently working on new bioprinting."