NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, left, Jessica Watkins, center, and Robert Hines, right, are seen in the in the One World Connected gallery looking at an interactive recreation of the International Space Station’s Cupola, Tuesday, March 28, 2023 at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington. Lindgren, Watkins, and Hines spent 170 days in space as part of Expeditions 67 and 68 aboard the International Space Station.

Forging the Path: Insights From a Decade of Managing the ISS National Laboratory

For more than 10 years, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, Inc. (CASIS) has served as manager of the first and only national laboratory in space: the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory.

The ISS National Lab plays a critical role in demonstrating the value of space-based research and development (R&D) and in establishing the operational and cooperative infrastructure to drive broad market expansion to establish a robust economy in LEO.

In this series of articles, CASIS experts share knowledge and insight from their unique experience managing a national lab in space as we look to the future LEO economy and the key role the ISS National Lab plays in getting us there.