Orbiter.ch Space News: Space Station Science Highlights: Week of July 26, 2021

vendredi 30 juillet 2021

Space Station Science Highlights: Week of July 26, 2021

ISS - Expedition 65 Mission patch.

July 30, 2021

Crew members aboard the International Space Station conducted scientific investigations during the week of July 26 that included studies of advanced materials, improving the food supply in space, and producing alloys without using a container.

Image above: This image shows Europe at night as the space station passes overhead. Image Credit: NASA.

The space station has been continuously inhabited by humans for 20 years, supporting many scientific breakthroughs. The orbiting lab provides a platform for long-duration research in microgravity and for learning to live and work in space, experience that supports Artemis, NASA’s program to go forward to the Moon and on to Mars.

Here are details on some of the microgravity investigations currently taking place:

Assembling advanced materials

Image above: Akihiko Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency works on the InSPACE-4 investigation, which could advance next-generation materials for a variety of uses on Earth and in space. Image Credit: NASA.

InSPACE-4 studies using magnetic fields to assemble tiny structures from colloids, or particles suspended in a liquid. These structures affect the properties of assembled materials, such as mechanical response to or interaction with light and heat. Microgravity makes possible colloid assembly free from confining sample walls and sedimentation that occur on Earth. Results could lead to advanced materials for space applications such as better thermal shields, protection from micrometeorites, materials for energy production, energy-transfer devices, control systems, and new mechanical actuators and sensors for robotic and human missions. This investigation also helps advance next-generation nanomaterials for applications on Earth such as thermal shields, sound damping devices, shock absorbers, camouflage, medical diagnostic and environmental sensors, display technologies, and advanced coatings. The technology also is expanding into larger-scale applications such as building foundation stabilizers for areas prone to earthquakes. During the week, crew members set up and initiated multiple experiment runs.

The menu matters

An army marches on its stomach, the saying goes, and astronauts fly on theirs. The success of any mission relies on plentiful, nutritious, and enjoyable food. A growing body of research on the space station looks at ways to improve the food supply as missions increase in length. During this week, crew members worked on two current food-related investigations.

Image above: This image was taken during plant harvest from the Veggie production facility for the Veg-04A experiment, part of a series of fresh food experiments that includes HRF Veg. That investigation uses psychological surveys and crew evaluations of the flavor and appeal of plants grown on the space station. Image Credit: NASA.

HRF Veg is part of a fresh food analysis project that also includes Veg-04A, Veg-04B, and Veg-05. HRF Veg uses psychological surveys and crew evaluations of the flavor and appeal of plants grown on the space station for other investigations, focusing on the overall health benefits to crew members of having various plants and fresh food.

Food Acceptability looks at how the appeal of food changes during long-duration missions. Whether crew members like and actually eat foods directly affects their caloric intake and associated nutritional benefits. Crew members sometimes report that they tire of certain foods, which could lead to decreased acceptability of those foods and may contribute to the loss of body mass often experienced by crew members. This could become more of a problem as mission length increases, and the investigation supports developing strategies to improve the food system and better support crew health and performance.

Leveraging levitation

In order to produce glass, metal alloys, or other materials on Earth, a mixture of raw materials is melted in a container. But chemical reactions can occur between the materials and the container, causing imperfections and contaminations. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) developed the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF), an experimental facility that enables melting and solidifying materials without a container in order to reduce these imperfections, something possible only in microgravity. The JAXA-ELF Investigation uses ELF to observe the behavior of materials used for high-temperature manufacturing of oxides, semiconductors, insulators, and alloys. Results could contribute to the development of technology to process materials without containers, benefiting design of new materials. Crew members exchanged the sample holder assembly for this investigation during the week.

Other investigations on which the crew performed work:

- Cell Science-04 examines the genes involved in tardigrade adaptation and survival in high stress environments, both short-term and across multiple generations. The results could advance understanding of the stress factors affecting humans in space.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7672

- GRIP, an ESA (European Space Agency) investigation, studies how spaceflight affects the grip force and movements that crew members use to manipulate objects. Results could identify potential hazards astronauts may face when they move between environments with different levels of gravity, such as landing on Mars after a lengthy voyage in space.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1188

- Pilote, an investigation from ESA, tests the effectiveness of remote operation of robotic arms and space vehicles using virtual reality and haptics, or simulated touch and motion. Results may influence the design of workstations and interfaces for future spacecraft and space habitats.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8347

Image above: NASA astronaut Megan McArthur works on Plant Water Management, a series of investigations testing use of capillary fluidics to deliver adequate water and nutrients to plants. Image Credit: NASA.

- Plant Water Management is a series of investigations to test using concepts of capillary fluidics – such as surface tension, wetting, and geometry – to deliver adequate water and nutrients to plants.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7884

- ACME includes six independent studies of flames that seek to improve fuel efficiency and reduce pollution from combustion on Earth and help prevent fires in spacecraft.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1651

- Time Perception, an investigation from ESA, examines subjective changes in time perception that occur during and after long-duration exposure to microgravity. Astronauts need to accurately assess the passing of time in order to perform fine motor skills and control vehicles and other complex systems at a high level of cognitive function.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7504

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