Projects Flying to Space Station on NG-20 Will Include Tissue Chips, Artificial Retina Production, a New Supercomputer, and More

CAPE CANAVERAL (FL), January 25, 2024 – A pair of robotic arms, a project to construct artificial retinas in space, and a new method of producing improved optical fibers are among more than 20 payloads sponsored by the International Space Station (ISSInternational Space Station) National Laboratory launching on Northrop Grumman’s 20^th Commercial Resupply Services mission(Abbreviation: CRS mission) A CRS mission is a cargo resupply mission contracted by NASA to deliver supplies and research to the International Space Station on commercial spacecraft as part of the CRS contract with three commercial companies. As part of CRS missions, experiments currently return to Earth on SpaceX Dragon spacecraft that splash down in the ocean. (NG-20). This will be the first mission in which a Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft launches atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The mission, contracted through NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration, will launch from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida no earlier than Monday, January 29, 2024.

More than 900 pounds of supplies, research, and technology demonstrations are flying on NG-20, enabling commerce in low Earth orbit(Abbreviation: LEO) The orbit around the Earth that extends up to an altitude of 2,000 km (1,200 miles) from Earth’s surface. The International Space Station’s orbit is in LEO, at an altitude of approximately 250 miles. and providing value to our nation through space-based inquiries. Here’s a look at a few of the science investigations on this mission:

• A tissue chipA tissue chip, or organ-on-a-chip or microphysiological system, is a small engineered device containing human cells and growth media to model the structure and function of human tissues and/or organs. Using tissue chips in microgravity, researchers can study the mechanisms behind disease and test new treatments for patients on Earth. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has a multiyear partnership with the ISS National Laboratory® to fund tissue chip research on the space station. study funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation will test a nanoparticle therapeutic to treat degenerative joint diseases on Earth. The research team, from the University of Connecticut, will evaluate whether the therapeutic helps to maintain human cartilage in the absence of biomechanical loading 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..
• Building on previous investigations, biotechnology startup LambdaVision will study whether a powdered form of the protein bacteriorhodopsin can be dissolved in solution in microgravity for the successful layer-by-layer manufacturing of artificial retinas. If successful, this could help significantly reduce the mass of materials traveling to the space station, allowing more manufacturing at a lower cost.
• Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) will test an updated version of the HPE Spaceborne Computer-2, a commercial off-the-shelf supercomputer based on HPE EdgeLine and ProLiant servers. HPE Spaceborne Computer-2 is equipped with software that enables performance in the harsh environment of space. Results from this investigation could streamline space-based research by providing quicker in-orbit data processing. Insight gained could also enable high-performance computing on future long-duration missions.
• Flawless Photonics, an optical fiber manufacturing company, is leveraging the space station to test its microgravity-based glass drawing processes on its ZBLAN manufacturing platform. The investigation aims to demonstrate the theorized benefits of manufacturing ZBLAN fibers in microgravity to eliminate gravity-induced defects. By harnessing the unique environment of microgravity, Flawless Photonics aims to produce fibers that offer significantly enhanced performance for a wide range of applications, including advanced laser systems and telecommunications devices for both space and Earth applications.
• An investigation from space robotics startup GITAI will evaluate how efficiently its dexterous robotic arm technology operates outside of the space station. This project aims to demonstrate that GITAI’s extravehicular robotic systems are capable of functioning in the space environment. A pair of robotic arms will perform a series of common crew activities and tasks via supervised autonomy and teleoperations from the ground.

These investigations and more will launch on the NG-20 Cygnus spacecraft, named SS Patricia “Patty” Hilliard Robertson for the late NASA astronaut, no earlier than Monday, January 29, 2024, at 12:29 p.m. EST from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Additionally, media are invited to talk to select researchers during a webinar at 1 p.m. EST, Friday, January 26, 2024. The webinar will be livestreamed on the ISS National Lab website for the public and on Zoom for media. Media who wish to participate are required to register for Zoom access no later than one hour in advance. The public can participate by using #ISSNationalLab on social media to ask questions of the researchers. A recording of the webinar will be available on our launch page shortly after.

Download a high-resolution for this release: Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus space freighter approaches the ISS in February, 2022

Media Contact:       
Patrick O’Neill
904-806-0035
PONeill@ISSNationalLab.org

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About the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory: The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that enables research and technology development not possible on Earth. As a public service enterprise, the ISS National Laboratory® allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve quality of life on Earth, mature space-based business models, advance science literacy in the future workforce, and expand a sustainable and scalable market in low Earth orbit. Through this orbiting national laboratory, research resources on the ISS are available to support non-NASA science, technology, and education initiatives from U.S. government agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™(Abbreviation: CASIS™) The nonprofit organization that manages the ISS National Lab, which receives at least 50 percent of the U.S. research allocation on the International Space Station to facilitate research that benefits humanity (NASA manages the other 50% and focuses on research for space exploration purposes).) manages the ISS National Lab, under Cooperative AgreementA cooperative agreement is Federal assistance that establishes a relationship between the U.S. Government and a recipient in which the principal purpose of the relationship is to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation.  Since 2011, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™) has managed the National Laboratory® through a Cooperative Agreement with NASA. with NASA, facilitating access to its permanent microgravity research environment, a powerful vantage point in low Earth orbit, and the extreme and varied conditions of space. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, visit our website.

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CASIS accepts corporate and individual donations to help advance science in space for the benefit of humanity. For more information, visit our donations page.