A Russian cosmonaut aboard the ISS has 3D printed human tissue for the first time in the microgravity of space. The cosmonaut used a magnetic levitation device created by Russian researchers to fabricate human cartilage from a few isolated cells. The scientists say that the work could lead to new techniques for regenerating tissues during long-term spaceflight.
NASA has been conducting a prolonged campaign of upgrading batteries on the outside of the International Space Station (ISS), and the upgrade process is nearly complete. Recently two astronauts changed out critical solar array batteries marking the near completion of a battery revitalization project that will keep the space station powered through 2024. The two astronauts, Chris Cassidy and Bob Behnken, completed the spacewalk on Thursday.
NASA has renewed its contract with Boeing to support the International Space Station, some good news for the beleaguered plane-maker amid increasingly unsettled times for the transportation industry. The extension will see Boeing continue working with NASA, Roscosmos, JAXA, ESA, and CSA through 2024, making sure the orbiting research platform continues to operate correctly.
Virgin Galactic will run private spaceflights to the International Space Station, inking a deal with NASA that will see it create a new space tourism program. The newly-signed Space Act Agreement will see Virgin Galactic train private astronauts, take them into orbit, and help demonstrate how the ISS could be used as more than the research platform it is today.
Aboard the International Space Station, physicists worked in a unique laboratory to create a Bose-Einstein condensate. With this quantum matter, scientists will be able to further (and better) explore the wide universe of quantum physics. The results of the proof-of-principal released in a research paper in Nature this week show that this Cold Atom Lab can "successfully exploit the microgravity of space in ways that should allow scientists to create phenomena that would be impossible on Earth."
NASA has detailed a new study that found precise microbial 'fingerprints' that astronauts left behind on the International Space Station. According to the research, microorganisms transferred from astronauts' bodies to the ISS environment retained a close resemblance to their source and scientists were able to determine which part of the astronaut's body they came from.
There have been countless movies that have been set in outer space but not all of them can make a claim to be really based on reality. For that to happen, one will have to actually be in space or at least shoot some scenes there. Considering the logistics, not to mention legal and regulatory requirements, of that stunt, it's no surprise that almost no one has even bothered to do so. Tom Cruise and SpaceX, however, want to change that and they have their eyes on the ISS from the get-go.
The human body undergoes a lot of stress when in the microgravity environment of space that causes physiological changes to astronauts. One point of study for long-term space travel is how to determine what long-term impacts spaceflight will have on the body and how to mitigate them. A new study has been published that was investigating known vision problems in astronauts after extended periods in space. The study suggests that the impact of long-duration space travel is more far-reaching than previously believed.
A newly published study reveals that lettuce grown in space is just as healthy as its counterpart grown on Earth, joining a previous taste test that determined the green and red leaves were 'tasty.' Watering plants in a microgravity environment isn't simple, however, and though a syringe-based watering system worked well enough for lettuce, NASA says it needs something more sophisticated for bigger vegetables.
Remember the times you would stare at the biggest LEGO display sets in the toy store wishing you could persuade your parents to buy you one? But like the most of us, you probably had to settle for one of the smaller boxes below $30. The good news is, it is not too late.
NASA's Kennedy Space Center has announced the publication of the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory's 2019 Annual Report. The publication details many of the accomplishments and various highlights related to the ISS National Lab during the space agency's 2019 fiscal year, which ended on September 30, 2019. Among other things, the ISS National Lab broke two of its own records last year.
NASA has announced that it has chosen Axiom Space to design, build, and launch a trio of pressurized modules for the ISS and a large Earth observation window. The partnership between NASA and Axiom is part of Appendix I of NASA Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships 2. The agency hopes that the program will stimulate commercial development of deep space exploration capabilities.