South East Angels portfolio company Siloton working with European Space Agency to tackle astronaut vision loss
South East Angels portfolio company Siloton is helping the European Space Agency tackle one of long-duration spaceflight’s most serious health risks: astronaut vision loss.
Around 70 percent of astronauts on the International Space Station experience some degree of vision change, caused by spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS), a condition where bodily fluid shifts in microgravity and puts pressure on the eyes and optic nerve. One NASA astronaut launched to the ISS with 20/20 vision and returned six months later with moderate visual impairment. With Artemis missions and deep-space travel ahead, where lengthening communication delays will make current ground-guided monitoring impractical, ESA has commissioned Siloton to develop a solution.
Founded by physicists in 2020, Siloton shrinks the core optics of an eye-testing device onto a photonic chip smaller than a coin, enabling astronauts to scan their own retinas without ground support, generating more data on any changes and potentially flagging early warning signs before vision is affected. It’s a natural extension of the company’s work with the NHS, where the same technology is being developed to let patients with retinal conditions self-scan at home.
