Bacteria and Biofuel Production
This view taken from inside the Cupola shows the Orbital ATK space freighter moments before it was grappled with the Canadarm2 robotic arm on May 24, 2018.
Media Credit: NASA
This week, International Space Station crew members are beginning work on an investigation aimed at evaluating pathways to enhance the biological production of the biofuel isobutene. The payload, which was developed by the University of Alaska, launched to the ISSInternational Space Station National Lab on Orbital ATK CRS-9 last Monday.
Isobutene is a key precursor for many products such as plastics and rubber and is primarily produced through petrochemical processes. This project is aimed at examining genetically engineered E. coli bacteria in microgravityThe condition of perceived weightlessness created when an object is in free fall, for example when an object is in orbital motion. Microgravity alters many observable phenomena within the physical and life sciences, allowing scientists to study things in ways not possible on Earth. The International Space Station provides access to a persistent microgravity environment. to better understand the metabolic pathways involved in the bacteria’s production of isobutene. The research team hopes to identify pathways that could be genetically modified to increase bioproduction rates of isobutene.
Learn more about this project and some of the other ISS National Lab payloads that launched to the space station on Orbital ATK CRS-9 in the video below.