Investigations
Studying biological and physical phenomena in extreme environments enables researchers to pursue innovations and discoveries in ways not possible on Earth.
NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences Division therefore utilizes many platforms of research which include the International Space Station and eventually the lunar orbit and Moon.
Upcoming Launches
- NG-20: No earlier than January, 2024
Past Launches
- SpaceX CRS-29: 11/9/2023
- NG-19: 8/1/2023
- SpaceX CRS-28: 6/5/2023
- SpaceX CRS-27: 3/14/2023
- SpaceX CRS-26: 11/26/2022
- Artemis I: 11/16/2022
- NG-18: 11/7/2022
- SpaceX CRS-25: 7/14/2022
- NG-17: 2/19/2022
- SpaceX CRS-24: 12/21/2021
- SpaceX CRS-23: 8/29/2021
- NG-16: 8/10/2022
- SpaceX CRS-22: 6/3/2021
- NG-15: 2/20/2021
- SpaceX CRS-21: 12/6/2020
The following is a list of current BPS investigations
Artemis I
- Biological Experiment-01 (BioExpt-01) mission – Studying how life responds to conditions beyond low-Earth orbit.
- Deep Space Radiation Genomics (DSRG) – Pioneering scientific discovery by correlating which genes provide yeast cells, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, with a higher probability of survival and the types and doses of radiation experienced beyond Earth’s protective magnetosphere.
- Fuel to Mars – Identifying genes and gene pathways in algae, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, that convey the best survival advantage during exposure to the combined impacts of space radiation and microgravity to become the parent strains in future studies to optimize generation of hydrogen and other fuels in space.
- Investigating the Roles of Melanin and DNA Repair on Adaptation and Survivability of Fungi in Deep Space – Determining the physiology and molecular pathways responsive to spaceflight using fungi, such as Aspergillus niger, a group of microorganisms commonly found in spacecrafts.
- Life Beyond Earth: Effect of Space Flight on Seeds with Improved Nutritional Value– Understanding the impact of space flight beyond the Van Allen radiation belt on amino acids which are the building blocks of proteins in Arabidopsis thaliana seeds.
International Space Station
- Advanced Combustion Microgravity Experiment (ACME) mission - Was a set of five independent studies of gaseous flames conducted in the Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR)
- Burning Rate Emulator (BRE) – Studies fire prevention, especially in spacecraft, by simulating the flammability of solid and liquid materials by burning gaseous fuels under key conditions corresponding to the solid and liquid materials.
- Coflow Laminar Diffusion Flame (CLD Flame) - Investigates combustion at the extremes of the fuel dilution spectrum – namely pure-fuel flames that produce soot, and highly diluted flames that are close to extinction.
- Electric-Field Effects on Laminar Diffusion Flames (E-FIELD Flames) - Investigates how the ions can be used to control non-premixed flames in order to gain an improved understanding of flame production.
- Flame Design - Improving our understanding of soot inception and control in order to enable the optimization of oxygen enriched combustion and the “design” of non-premixed flames that are both robust and soot free.
- Structure and Response of Spherical Flames (s-Flame) - Advancing our ability to predict the structure and dynamics, including extinction, of both soot-free and sooty flames.
- Advanced Plant Experiment-07 (APEX-07) — Examining how changes in gravity and other environmental factors associated with spaceflight affect plants at the level of gene expression
- Advanced Plant EXperiment-08 (APEX-08) — Examining the role of polyamines in stress response mitigation to microgravity in Arabidopsis thaliana.
- Advanced Plant Habitat — The largest, fully automated plant growth research facility that is used to conduct plant bioscience research on the International Space Station (ISS).
- An Integrated Omics Guided Approach to Lignification and Gravitational Responses: The Final Frontier (Plant Habitat-01) - Comprehensively compared differences in genetics, metabolism, photosynthesis and gravity sensing between plants grown in space and on Earth.
- Assessment of Nutritional Value and growth Parameters of Space-grown Plants (Plant Habitat-02) - Measured the metabolic and physiological responses of radishes grown in the Advanced Plant Habitat facility and identifies the effects of the space environment and culture conditions on metabolite accumulation, flavor, enzyme activity, mineral uptake and generation time.
- Epigenetic Adaptation to the Spaceflight Environment – Accumulated Genomic Change Induced by Generations in Space (Plant Habitat-03) - Assesses whether epigenetic adaptations in one generation of plants grown in space can transfer to the next generation.
- Effect of Spaceflight and Simulated Microgravity on Plant Defense Responses (Plant Habitat-06)- Investigates the physiological and genetic responses to defense activation and immune system function in tomatoes during spaceflight.
- Alteration of Bacillus Subtilis DNA Architecture in Space: global effects on DNA supercoiling, methylation, and the transcriptome (BRIC-26) - Understanding how the spaceflight environment can generate cellular outcomes that can in turn affect the greater health of the exploration ecosystem.
- Bacterial Adhesion and Corrosion (BAC) — explores the formation under microgravity conditions of multi-species biofilms, which may behave differently from single-species biofilms.
- Biological Research In Canisters-24 (BRIC-24) — Testing the role of membrane contacts in plant gravity perception
- BioScience-4 – Studying the multiplication of nervous system stem cells in microgravity. (Returned on SpaceX-21)
- BRazing of Aluminum alloys IN Space (SUBSA-BRAINS) – Examines differences in capillary flow, interface reactions, and bubble formation during solidification of brazing alloys in microgravity.
- Cell Science-04 (CS-04) — Using Water Bears to Identify Biological Countermeasures to Stress during Multigenerational Spaceflight
- Characterization of Biofilm Formation, Growth, and Gene Expression on Different Materials and Environmental Conditions in Microgravity (Space Biofilms) —Characterizes the mass, thickness, structure, and associated gene expression of biofilms (molds) that form in space by analyzing a fungal species grown on different materials.
- Dendrite Fragmentation and Morphology During Melting and Solidification (DFM) – Examining potential ability to produce metals with higher strength, both in space and on Earth.
- Device for the Study of Critical Liquids and Crystallization (DECLIC) — A multi-user facility designed to support experiments in the fields of fluid physics and materials science. It was developed by the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (French Space Agency, CNES) and flown in collaboration with NASA.
- DEvice for the study of Critical LIquids and Crystallization - Directional Solidification Insert-Reflight (DSI-R) — Observing clear alloys that freeze like metals in microgravity.
- Dynamics of Microbiomes in Space (DynaMoS) – Examines how microgravity affects metabolic interactions in communities of soil microbes.
- eXposed Root On-Orbit Test System (XROOTS) Tech Demo – Uses hydroponic and aeroponic techniques to grow plants without soil or other growth media.
- Fabrication of Amorphous Metals in Space (FAMIS) - Studying the microstructure of composites of bulk metallic glass (BMG) and tungsten spheres processed in microgravity.
- Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment (FBCE) – An integrated two-phase flow boiling and condensation facility for the International Space Station
- Foam Optics and Mechanics (FOAM) — Studies the relative stability of foams and bubbly liquids in order to gain insight into how they evolve with time.
- FSL Soft Matter Dynamics – Particle STAbilised Emulsions and Foams (PASTA) — Aims to study the dynamics of droplets and their size evolution in emulsions. It is sponsored by the European Space Agency (ESA) with a BPS Co-Investigator.
- Gravitation Effects on Distortion in Sintering (GEDS) — Exploring liquid-phase sintering as a means to perform in-space fabrication and repair. (Returned on SpaceX-21)
- Growth of Ternary Compound Semiconductors (MSL SCA-GTCS) — Comparing the structural quality of crystals grown on Earth and in microgravity.
- Micro-14A – Studying the effects of spaceflight on Candida albicans (C. albicans), a pathogenic yeast that can infect the human body. (Returned on SpaceX-21)
- Micro-16 – Determining loss of muscle mass and strength in space on humans by investigating the effects of space on tiny worms (Launched on NG-15)
- Microbial Tracking-3 (MT-3) — Cataloging and characterizing potential disease-causing microorganisms aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
- Microgravity Investigation of Thermophysical Properties of Supercooled Molten Metal Oxides (ELF 5/Superglass) - Measures the density, thermal expansion coefficient, viscosity and surface tension of supercooled liquids over a wide range of temperatures and compositions.
- MISSE-SEED – Investigating the effects of long-duration space radiation exposure on seed quality and storage (Launched on NG-15)
- Multi-use Variable-g Platform Cell-02 (MVP Cell-02)– This investigation’s goal is to understand the effects of the space environment on evolutionary processes in the bacterium Bacillus subtilis.
- Pick-and-eat Salad-crop Productivity, Nutritional Value, and Acceptability to Supplement the ISS Food System (Veg-05) - Expands crop variety to dwarf tomatoes and focuses on the impact of light quality and fertilizer on fruit production, microbial food safety, nutritional value, taste acceptability by the crew and the overall behavioral health benefits of having plants and fresh food in space. (Sponsored by NASA’s Human Research Program in partnership with BPS providing hardware and science support)
- Plant RNA Regulation Redux in Multi Variable Platform (MVP) - (MVP-Plant-01) — Profiles and monitors shoot and root development in plants in microgravity.
- Plant Water Management-5 and 6 (PWM-5 and 6) — Profiles and monitors shoot and root development in plants in microgravity.
- Quantifying Selection for Pathogenicity and Antibiotic Resistance in Bacteria and Fungi on the ISS – a Microbial Tracking Study - (MT-3C) — Continues the third point in a time series focused on ongoing monitoring of pathogenicity (ability to cause disease).
- Real-Time Protein Crystal Growth-2 (RTPCG-2) – Investigating protein crystal growth in microgravity to identify possible targets for drugs to treat disease (Launched on NG-15)
- Residence Time Driven Flame Spread (SoFIE-RTDFS) – Studies steady and unsteady flame propagation over solid fuels in a microgravity environment.
- Ring Sheared Drop (RSD) – Examining the formation and flow of amyloid in microgravity to better understand neurodegenerative diseases
- Rodent Research-10 (RR-10) – Investigating how microgravity affects the cellular and molecular mechanisms of normal bone tissue regeneration in space. (Returned on SpaceX-21)
- Rodent Research-20 (RR-20) – This investigation aims to improve understanding the impact of spaceflight on women’s reproductive health.
- Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction (SoFIE) Facility — Studies ignition and flammability of solid spacecraft materials in practical geometries and realistic atmospheric conditions.
- Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction – Growth and Extinction Limit (SoFIE-GEL) — Studies burning in microgravity, measuring the amount of heating in a fuel sample to determine how fuel temperature affects material flammability.
- Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction – Material Ignition and Suppression Test (SoFIE-MIST) — Examines thermally-assisted burning in microgravity, by varying parameters including air flow speed, oxygen concentration, pressure, and level of external radiation.
- Understanding of Microgravity on Animal-Microbe Interactions (UMAMI) — Examining the effects of spaceflight on the molecular and chemical interactions between beneficial microbes and their animal hosts.
- Light Microscopy Module (LMM) — A modified commercial, highly flexible, state-of-the-art light imaging microscope facility that provided researchers with powerful diagnostic hardware and software onboard the International Space Station (ISS).
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Temperature control-1 (ACE-T-1) — Studies tiny, suspended particles which have been designed to connect themselves in a specific way to form organized structures within water.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment – Temperature-2 (ACE-T-2) — Looks at the assembly of complex structures from micron-scale colloidal particles interacting via tunable attractive interactions.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment – Temperature-4 (ACE-T-4) — Examines the transition of an ordered crystal to a disordered glass to determine how increasing disorder affects structural and dynamic properties.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment – Temperature-5 (ACE-T-5) — Examines the physical and chemical characteristics of a new class of soft materials, bicontinuous interfacially jammed emulsion gels, or bijels.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment – Temperature-7 (ACE-T-7) — Involves the design and assembly of complex three-dimensional structures from small particles suspended within a fluid medium.
- Advanced Imaging, Folding, and Assembly of Colloidal Molecules (ACE-T-9) – Investigating the imaging, folding, and assembly of complex colloidal molecules within a fluid medium.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Temperature-10 (ACE-T-10) — Investigates the growth kinetics, microscopic dynamics, and restructuring processes in ordered and disordered structures such as colloidal crystals, glasses and gels.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Temperature Control and Gradient Sample-11 (ACE-T-11) — Involves the design and assembly of complex three-dimensional (3D) structures from colloids, or small particles suspended within a fluid medium, and control of particle density and phase behavior.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Nanoparticle Haloing (ACE-T-12) — Involves design and assembly of complex three-dimensional (3D) structures from colloids, or particles of different sizes suspended in a fluid.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Heated-1 (ACE-H-1) — Examines densely packed microscopic spheres, or colloidal mixtures, to study their transition from ordered crystals into disordered glass.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Heated-2 (ACE-H-2) — Studies a technique called nanoparticle haloing, which stabilizes colloidal mixtures and may be important for designing advanced materials for use in medicine, imaging and other fields.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Microscopy-1 (ACE-M-1) — Studies the behavior of microscopic particles in gels and creams.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Microscopy-2 (ACE-M-2) — Observes the microscopic behavior of liquids and gases separating from each other.
- Advanced Colloids Experiment-Microscopy-3 (ACE-M-3) — Involves the design and assembly of complex three-dimensional structures from small particles suspended within a fluid medium.
- Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment – Light Microscopy Module: Biological Samples (PACE-LMM-Bio) — Expands the utility of the Light Microscopy Microscope hardware and provides a resource for biological studies on the International Space Station (ISS).
- Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment: 100X Oil Test Target (PACE) — A technology demonstration for the Advanced Colloids Experiment (ACE) planned for future International Space Station (ISS) Expeditions.
- The Effect of Macromolecular Transport of Microgravity Protein Crystallization (LMM Biophysics 4) — Examines the movement of single protein molecules in microgravity in order to understand why proteins crystallized in microgravity are often higher in quality than those grown on Earth.
- Solution Convection and the Nucleation Precursors in Protein Crystallization (LMM Biophysics-5) — Tests whether solution convection – movement of molecules through the fluid – enhances or suppresses formation of the dense liquid clusters from which crystals form.
- Growth Rate Dispersion as a Predictive Indicator for Biological Crystal Samples Where Quality Can be Improved with Microgravity Growth (LMM Biophysics 6) — Studies ground-based predictions of which crystals benefit from crystallization in microgravity, where Earth’s gravity does not interfere with their formation.
- Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment - 2: 3D Particle Test (PACE-2) — Characterizes the resolution of the high magnification colloid experiments with the Light Microscopy Module (LMM) to determine the minimum size of the particles that can be resolved by the advanced Colloids Experiment (ACE).
- Constrained Vapor Bubble (CVB) — Aims to achieve a better understanding of the physic of evaporation and condensation and how they affect cooling processes in microgravity using a remotely controlled microscope and a small cooling device.
- Constrained Vapor Bubble-2 (CVB-2) — Uses a miniature heat pipe and a mixture of two fuels to investigate the physics and engineering of heat transfer systems.
- LMM Biophysics-2 (LMMBIO-2) — Characterizes the behavior of dense liquid clusters at different rates of convection, utilizing differential dynamic microscopy.
- Spaceflight-Induced Hypoxic-ROS Signaling (APEX-05) — Growing different wild and mutant varieties of Arabidopsis thaliana in order to understand how their genetic and molecular stress response systems work in space.
- Transgenic Arabidopsis Gene Expression System - Intracellular Signaling Architecture (APEX-03-2 TAGES-Isa) — Studies thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) seedlings grown in microgravity, examining the molecular changes that affect their growth.
Low Earth Orbit
- Effect of Long Duration Space Exposure on Seeds – Investigating the effects of long duration exposure to microgravity and space radiation on seed viability. This is a collaboration between the United States Space Force and BPS.
Ground Research
- Assessing Long-Term Effects of Radiation Exposure in Engineered Heart & Vascular Tissues – Understanding how and why radiation exposure causes disease by using heart and blood vessel-like tissues created with stem cell biology and tissue engineering technology.
- Bioengineer Long-lasting 3D Neurovascular Microphysiological System to Model Chronic Inflammation Mediated Neurodegeneration – Developing a long-lasting neurovascular model that can be used to evaluate the impact of chronic stressors to the brain.
- EFRI ELiS: Bioweathering Dynamics and Ecophysiology of Microbially Catalyzed Soil Genesis of Martian Regolith – Studies how weathering of Martian soil simulants by microorganisms can engineer soil heath and how plants grow in response to soil improvement by microorganisms.
- Extended Culture of Kidney MPS and Organoids to Model Acute and Chronic Exposure to Drugs and Environmental Toxins – Using kidney chips and organoids to better understand injury and recovery from chronic exposure to drugs, toxins and pathogens.
- Identification of Biomarkers and Pathological Mechanisms via Longitudinal Analysis of Neurological and Cerebrovascular Responses to Neurotoxic Stress Using a Multi-cellular Integrated Model of the Human Brain – Determining how genetically divers human brain tissue responds to neurotoxic stresses that may be encountered in space.
- Long-lived Single- and Multi-organ Tissue Equivalent (OTE) Platforms to Model the Response of Human Tissues to Various Stressors – Using human organ tissue equivalents (OTEs) to gain insight into how different human tissues respond to spaceflight stressors.
- Long-term Patient iPC Vessel Chip Model to Assess Stressors of Atherosclerosis and mRNA Therapeutics – Studying vascular signaling mechanisms to identify therapeutics for aging and radiation-related vascular diseases.
- Modeling Anthracycline-triggered Vascular Dysfunction – Using an organ-on-chip platform to investigate how doxorubicin triggers vascular cell dysfunction which will support development of new therapeutic interventions to curtail off-target effects.
- Multi-Organ Repair Post Hypoxia (MORPH) – Studying the effects of acute hypoxia on organ systems that are most critically affected: brain, heart, bone marrow and vasculature.
- Understanding the Brain-Liver-Gut Axis during Spaceflight and Aging – Providing long-term, multicellular complex human tissue models for studying responses to acute and chronic spaceflight stressors that mimic deep space exploration.
