Space Station research marks two decades of breakthroughs – Theredstonerocket

Over the past two decades, the International Space Station has been helping NASA explore farther into space and benefitting life back on Earth. Among the historic scientific breakthroughs achieved, astronauts have practiced stimulating the low-Earth orbit economy, growing food in microgravity, deploying cube satellites from station, and monitoring Earth from a unique perspective.

Stimulating the low-Earth orbit economy: From satellite deployment to in-space research, a vibrant commercial space economy has developed, with a value that now exceeds $345 billion. The space station has been a key part of supporting that growth.

Commercial activities validate business models and expand the numbers of entities with experience in conducting business in space. Commercialization of low-Earth orbit frees up resources NASA needs to continue its exploration of space. By having companies join forces with government agencies, space exploration can continue, while providing access to a platform that helpscreate jobs, build revenues, and create new products and services for people on Earth.

Through the ISS U.S. National Lab, many companies are able to access the space station and conduct research and technology development investigations in microgravity. The multitude of studies has worked to improve products such as shampoo, fabric softener, and the processes used to create retinal implants.

Growing food in microgravity: As humans explore farther from Earth, the ability to grow food is a solution to several challenges of long-duration missions. The packaged diet used by crews in low-Earth orbit works well but relies on frequent resupply missions. During a mission to Mars, the vitamins and quality of packaged food would degrade over time and couldnt easily be restocked.

Fresh produce provides nutritious meals over multiple years and reduces cargo requirements for the trip. New solutions for watering, lighting and growing plants have been explored on station to prepare for these missions. In 2015, astronauts sampled theirfirst space-grown salad. Eight types of leafy greens have been grown in the Veggie facility for astronauts to eat, fine tuning the best techniques.

Deployment of cube satellites from station: Cube satellites one of the smallest types of satellites provide an inexpensive way to perform science and technology demonstrations in space. One way these compact cubes can reach Earth orbit is by hitching a ride to the space station, where they are deployed from an airlock. Sharing the cost of a rocket launch with the other groups launching payloads to the space station can make deploying a CubeSat more affordable.

Putting these satellites into low-Earth orbit gives researchers and companies a unique perspective on Earth. More than 250 CubeSats have been deployed from station, performing numerous technology demonstrations, providing Internet services, and more. NASAsCubeSat Launch initiativeprovides a pathway to conduct research in space for CubeSats developed by educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, and NASA centers and programs.

Monitoring Earth from a unique perspective: At about 250 miles above Earth on a 90-minute orbit and an orbital path over 90% of Earths population, the station affords a unique perspective that cannot be obtained on the ground, and it can provide improved spatial resolution and variable lighting conditions compared to the sun-synchronous orbits of typical Earth remote-sensing satellites.

When scientists can better comprehend and monitor water and energy cycles, ecosystem changes, geological hazards, and population migrations, they can offer useful information regarding climate changes, as well as assist with natural disaster response.

The orbiting lab has evolved into a robust platform for researchers studying Earths water, air, land masses, vegetation, and more.ECOSTRESSanalyzes water stress in plants, whileGEDIlooks at the same areas of Earth, analyzing carbon stored in forests. Though the many experiments collect data individually, together they provide a set of measurements that pushes the leading edge of environmental research.

Editors note: This is the third in a five-part series highlighting scientific and technological breakthroughs that have been achieved over the past two decades as a result of International Space Station science. This research helps humanity explore farther into space while also benefiting life on Earth. The Payload Operations Integration Center at Marshall Space Flight Center schedules, assists with, and coordinates all experiments on the station's U.S. Orbital Segment.

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Space Station research marks two decades of breakthroughs - Theredstonerocket