Redwire and Recently Acquired Subsidiary Techshot Launching Payloads Leveraging ISS National Lab on SpaceX CRS-24
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, topped with the upgraded version of the Cargo Dragon spacecraft, is seen inside the company’s hangar at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Dec. 2, 2020, prior to being rolled out to the launch pad in preparation for the 21st Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-21) launch.
Media Credit: NASA
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER (FL), December 17, 2021 –When SpaceX’s 24th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission to the International Space Station (ISSInternational Space Station) takes flight, it will include a new technology demonstration that will support future in-space production 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. (LEO). Advancing in-space production applications(Abbreviation: InSPA) InSPA is an applied research and development program sponsored by NASA and the ISS National Lab aimed at demonstrating space-based manufacturing and production activities by using the unique space environment to develop, test, or mature products and processes that could have an economic impact. is a top strategic priority for both NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration and the ISS National Laboratory. By supporting technology demonstrations that further in-space production applications, the ISS National Lab is enabling activities that could lead to sustainable business models in space that provide value to the nation.
Redwire Space, a leading space infrastructure company and ISS National Lab Commercial Service ProviderImplementation Partners that own and operate commercial facilities for the support of research on the ISS or are developing future facilities., seeks to accelerate humanity’s expansion in space. Redwire is presently responsible for more than 25 space-based facilities, many of which reside on the ISS. On SpaceX CRS-24, the company will launch a new commercial in-space manufacturing device, the Turbine Superalloy Casting Module (TSCM). The TSCM allows manufacturing of single-piece turbine blisks (blade/disk combination) for turbine engines. Through this technology demonstration, Redwire will test the hypothesis that polycrystalline superalloy parts thermally processed 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. have improved microstructure and mechanical properties than those processed on Earth. If successful, the test could show that the superior parts produced in microgravity could improve the performance of turbine engines in industries such as aerospace and power generation. This could open pathways toward space-based production of valuable new commercial products.
Additionally, Redwire recently acquired Techshot, a leader in the development and operation of space biotechnology facilities and also an ISS National Lab Commercial Service Provider. On SpaceX CRS-24, Techshot will support its first investigation since the public announcement of the acquisition. This investigation, from a team of researchers at Clemson University, aims to examine gene expression patterns in cotton plant tissue cultures exposed to spaceflight to elucidate the molecular mechanisms involved in plant regeneration. A better understanding of plant regeneration could improve plant breeding and seed production for designer cotton varieties that are able to grow in suboptimal conditions and that have improved fiber characteristics.
“The ISS has been an invaluable platform for Redwire to advance new capabilities and support LEO commercialization,” said Andrew Rush, COO and president of Redwire. “The wide range of Redwire science launching on this mission will continue to leverage the ISS to harness unprecedented scientific discovery to build demand for products and services in LEO, improve life on Earth, and advance humanity’s presence in space.”
SpaceX CRS-24 is targeted for launch from Kennedy Space Center no earlier than December 21 at 5:06 a.m. EST. This mission will include more than 15 ISS National Lab-sponsored payloads. To learn more about all ISS National Lab-sponsored research on SpaceX CRS-24, please visit our mission launch page.
Media Contact:
Patrick O’Neill
904-806-0035
PONeill@ISSNationalLab.org
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About the International Space Station (ISS) U.S. 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 Lab allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve 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 stg-issnationallab-issnldevsite.kinsta.cloud.
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