Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site
Hera asteroid mission - launch highlights
-
Similar Topics
-
By NASA
A host of scientific investigations await the crew of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission during their long-duration expedition aboard the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, are set to study plant cell division and microgravity’s effects on bacteria-killing viruses, as well as perform experiments to produce a higher volume of human stem cells and generate on-demand nutrients.
Here are details on some of the research scheduled during the Crew-11 mission:
Making more stem cells
Cultures of stem cells grown in 2D on Earth, left, and as 3D spheres in simulated microgravity on Earth.BioServe A stem cell investigation called StemCellEx-IP1 evaluates using microgravity to produce large numbers of induced pluripotent stem cells. Made by reprogramming skin or blood cells, these stem cells can transform into any type of cell in the body and are used in regenerative medicine therapies for many diseases. However, producing enough cells on the ground is a challenge.
Researchers plan to use the microgravity environment aboard the space station to demonstrate whether generating 1,000 times more cells is possible and whether these cells are of higher quality and better for clinical use than those made on Earth. If proven, this could significantly improve future patient outcomes.
“This type of stem cell research is a chance to find treatments and maybe even cures for diseases that currently have none,” said Tobias Niederwieser of BioServe Space Technologies, which developed the investigation. “This represents an incredible potential to make life here on Earth better for all of us. We can take skin or blood cells from a patient, convert them into stem cells, and produce custom cell-therapy with little risk for rejection, as they are the person’s own cells.”
Alternative to antibiotics
Genes in Space-12 student investigators Isabella Chuang, left, and Julia Gross, middle, with mentor Kayleigh Ingersoll Omdahl.Genes in Space Genes in Space is a series of competitions in which students in grades 7 through 12 design DNA experiments that are flown to the space station. Genes in Space-12 examines the effects of microgravity on interactions between certain bacteria and bacteriophages, which are viruses that infect and kill bacteria. Bacteriophages already are used to treat bacterial infections on Earth.
“Boeing and miniPCR bio co-founded this competition to bring real-world scientific experiences to the classroom and promote molecular biology investigations on the space station,” said Scott Copeland of Boeing, and co-founder of Genes in Space. “This
investigation could establish a foundation for using these viruses to treat bacterial infections in space, potentially decreasing the dependence on antibiotics.”
“Previous studies indicate that bacteria may display increased growth rates and virulence in space, while the antibiotics used to combat them may be less effective,” said Dr. Ally Huang, staff scientist at miniPCR bio. “Phages produced in space could have profound implications for human health, microbial control, and the sustainability of long-duration remote missions. Phage therapy tools also could revolutionize how we manage bacterial infections and microbial ecosystems on Earth.”
Edible organisms
A purple, pre-incubation BioNutrients-3 bag, left, and a pink bag, right, which has completed incubation, on a purple and pink board used for comparison.NASA Some vitamins and nutrients in foods and supplements lose their potency during prolonged storage, and insufficient intake of even a single nutrient can lead to serious diseases, such as a vitamin C deficiency, causing scurvy. The BioNutrients-3 experiment builds on previous investigations looking at ways to produce on-demand nutrients in space using genetically engineered organisms that remain viable for years. These include yogurt and a yeast-based beverage made from yeast strains previously tested aboard station, as well as a new, engineered co-culture that produces multiple nutrients in one sample bag.
“BioNutrients-3 includes multiple food safety features, including pasteurization to kill microorganisms in the sample and a demonstration of the feasibility of using a sensor called E-Nose that simulates an ultra-sensitive nose to detect pathogens,” said Kevin Sims, project manager at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley.
Another food safety feature is a food-grade pH indicator to track bacterial growth.
“These pH indicators help the crew visualize the progress of the yogurt and kefir samples,” Sims said. “As the organisms grow, they generate lactic acid, which lowers the pH and turns the indicator pink.”
The research also features an investigation of yogurt passage, which seeds new cultures using a bit of yogurt from a finished bag, much like maintaining a sourdough bread starter. This method could sustain a culture over multiple generations, eliminating concerns about yogurt’s shelf life during a mission to the Moon or Mars while reducing launch mass.
Understanding cell division
Cells of green algae dividing.University of Toyama The JAXA Plant Cell Division investigation examines how microgravity affects cell division in green algae and a strain of cultured tobacco cells. Cell division is a fundamental element of plant growth, but few studies have examined it in microgravity.
“The tobacco cells divide frequently, making the process easy to observe,” said Junya Kirima of JAXA. “We are excited to reveal the effects of the space environment on plant cell division and look forward to performing time-lapse live imaging of it aboard the space station.”
Understanding this process could support the development of better methods for growing plants for food in space, including on the Moon and Mars. This investigation also could provide insight to help make plant production systems on Earth more efficient.
For nearly 25 years, people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and conducting critical research for the benefit of humanity and our home planet. Space station research supports the future of human spaceflight as NASA looks toward deep space missions to the Moon under the Artemis campaign and in preparation for future human missions to Mars, as well as expanding commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit and beyond.
Learn more about the International Space Station at:
https://www.nasa.gov/station
Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
Latest News from Space Station Research
Space Station Research and Technology
Humans In Space
Station Benefits for Humanity
View the full article
-
By NASA
Explore This Section Science Uncategorized Helio Highlights: June… Home Framework for Heliophysics Education About Helio Big Idea 1.1 Helio Big Idea 1.2 Helio Big Idea 1.3 Helio Big Idea 2.1 Helio Big Idea 2.2 Helio Big Idea 2.3 Helio Big Idea 3.1 Helio Big Idea 3.2 Helio Big Idea 3.3 Helio Missions Helio Topics Resource Database About NASA HEAT More Highlights Space Math 4 min read
Helio Highlights: June 2025
4 Min Read Helio Highlights: June 2025
An artist’s interpretation of the Parker Solar Probe flying through the corona. Credits:
NASA Two Stars in Solar Science
It takes a lot of work to make space missions happen. Hundreds or even thousands of experts work as a team to put together the spacecraft. Then it has to be tested in conditions similar to space, to be sure that it can survive out there once it is launched. Fixing big issues that pop up after launch is either impossible or very difficult, so it is important that everything works before the mission gets to space.
The Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter missions study the Sun from different points of view. Parker is led by NASA and was built to fly into the upper atmosphere of the Sun, called the corona. Solar Orbiter is led by the European Space Agency (ESA) and has gotten our first peek at the Sun’s poles. Together, they both provide a deeper understanding of the Sun and how it affects the rest of the solar system.
A New Way of Seeing
It takes a lot of teamwork to build and launch any space mission, and Solar Orbiter was no different. It also had to go through a lot of testing in conditions similar to outer space before it made its final journey to the launch site.
The Solar Orbiter mission has taken the highest-ever-resolution images of the Sun and recently sent back the first ever close-up images of the Sun’s poles. It has also studied the solar wind to see what it is made of and helped scientists find out where on the Sun the solar wind comes from. Working hand-in-hand with Parker, it has also shown how the solar wind gets a magnetic “push” that increases its total speed.
An infographic showing the ten scientific instruments carried aboard Solar Orbiter European Space Agency To get all of this done, the spacecraft carries ten different scientific instruments on its voyage around the Sun. These instruments work together to provide a total overview of our star. Six of them are remote-sensing instruments (above in gold), which “see” the Sun and return imagery to Earth. The other four are what’s called in-situ instruments (above in pink), which measure the environment all around the spacecraft. This includes the solar wind, and the electric and magnetic fields embedded within it.
Faster and Closer Than Ever Before
The Parker Solar Probe was named for Dr. Eugene N. Parker, who pioneered our modern understanding of the Sun. In the mid-1950s, Parker developed a theory that predicted the solar wind. The probe named after him is designed to swoop within 4 million miles (6.5 million kilometers) of the Sun’s surface to trace its energy flow, to study the heating of the corona, and to explore what accelerates the solar wind.
To get all this done, the probe has to survive the blazing hot corona. It can get up to about 2 million °F (1.1 million °C)! Parker uses high-tech thermal engineering to protect itself, including an eight-foot diameter heat shield called the Thermal Protection System (TPS). The TPS is made of two panels of carbon composite with a lightweight 4.5-inch-thick carbon foam core. This heat shield sandwich keeps things about 85 °F (29 °C) in its shadow, even though the Sun-facing side reaches about 2,500 °F (1,377 °C)!
In 2018, the Parker Solar Probe became the fastest spacecraft ever built, at about 430,000 miles per hour (700,000 kilometers per hour). It also got seven times closer to the Sun than any other spacecraft, getting within 3.8 million miles (6.2 million kilometers). It made this record-breaking close encounter on Christmas Eve of 2024.
From Yesterday to Tomorrow
The Parker Solar Probe was launched on August 12, 2018, and Solar Orbiter was launched on February 10, 2020. Both of them took off from Cape Canaveral Air Station in Florida. Some pieces of Solar Orbiter were transported in trucks, but the completed spacecraft made the journey from Europe to the U.S. on a gigantic Antonov cargo plane designed especially for transporting spacecraft.
Together, these spacecraft have done a lot to improve our knowledge of the Sun. Both missions are currently in their main operational phase, with projected end-of-mission sometime in 2026, and could continue returning data for a few years to come.
Here are more resources about these missions
Lesson Plans & Educator Guides
NASA Helio Club
Lesson Plan
A collection of six lessons created for a middle-school audience that introduce basic heliophysics concepts.
Interactive Resources
Build A Model Solar
Probe Activity
A hands-on guide showing students how to construct a homemade model of the Parker Solar Probe.
Webinars & Slide Decks
Parker’s Perihelion
The Parker Solar Probe mission is the first spacecraft to “touch” the Sun, and made its closest approach in late 2024.
How will Parker Solar Probe study the Sun?
A slide deck with resources explaining how the Parker Solar Probe can study the Sun and survive.
Exploring the Sun with Solar Orbiter Video
A video conversation about the Solar Orbiter mission with NASA scientist Dr. Teresa Nieves-Chinchilla.
View the full article
-
By European Space Agency
After 20 days in space, ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and his Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crewmates returned safely to Earth today, 15 July 2025.
View the full article
-
-
-
-
Check out these Videos
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.