Advanced Life Support Division Equipment
Advanced Life Support Division Equipment
Advanced Life Support Division Equipment
Advanced Life Support Division Equipment
iss072e941773 (April 9, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Jonny Kim installs experimental hydrogen sensors to test the advanced life support gear for longer calibration life and improved reliability aboard the International Space Station's Destiny laboratory module.
iss072e941778 (April 9, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Jonny Kim installs experimental hydrogen sensors to test the advanced life support gear for longer calibration life and improved reliability aboard the International Space Station's Destiny laboratory module.
iss071e549503 (Aug. 27, 2024) --- NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore removes the carbon dioxide removal assembly and its components, advanced life support hardware, installed in the Tranquility module's Air Revitalization Rack for maintenance.
iss071e673567 (Sept. 17, 2024) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 71 Flight Engineer Matthew Dominick works on an oxygen genarator and prepares the advanced life support device for hardware replacements aboard the International Space Station's Destiny laboratory module.
iss059e112425 (June 18, 2019) --- Flight Engineer Nick Hague is supporting research for the Capillary Structures experiment that uses specialized hardware to demonstrate the flow of fluid and gas mixtures using surface tension and fluid dynamics. The fluid physics study is helping NASA evaluate technologies for a lightweight, advanced life support system that can recover water and remove carbon dioxide in space.
iss073e0982894 (Oct. 28, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Mike Fincke poses for a portrait next to the Microgravity Science Glovebox aboard the International Space Station’s Destiny laboratory module. Fincke had just completed configuring research hardware for the Zero Boil-Off Tank physics investigation, which explores methods for storing cryogenic fluids. The experiment supports advancements in spacecraft propulsion and life support systems, as well as biotechnological, medical, and industrial applications on Earth.
iss073e0982900 (Oct. 28, 2025) --- Expedition 73 Flight Engineers Mike Fincke of NASA and Kimiya Yui of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) work together to configure research hardware for the Zero Boil-Off Tank physics investigation inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox aboard the International Space Station. The experiment explores methods for storing cryogenic fluids and supports advancements in spacecraft propulsion and life support systems, as well as biotechnological, medical, and industrial applications on Earth.
iss072e189176 (Nov. 15, 2024) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Nick Hague services samples of the Arthrospira C micro-algae for incubation and analysis. Scientists will expose the radiation-resistant samples to different light intensities while monitoring their cell growth and oxygen production. Results may advance life support systems and fresh food production in space.
iss072e280746 (Nov. 26, 2024) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Nick Hague processes radiation-resistant samples of Arthrospira C micro-algae and stows them in an incubator for analysis inside the International Space Station's Columbus laboratory module. The samples will be exposed to different light intensities to observe how they affect the micro-algae’s cell growth and oxygen production. Results may advance the development of spacecraft life support systems and fresh food production in space.
iss073e0118580 (May 27, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers replaces components on an experimental carbon dioxide removal device aboard the International Space Station. Also called the Thermal Amine Scrubber, the advanced life support mechanism is testing a new method that removes carbon dioxide from the station’s atmosphere and recovers water for oxygen generation.
iss073e0118580 (May 27, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Jonny Kim services an experimental carbon dioxide removal device aboard the International Space Station. Also called the Thermal Amine Scrubber, the advanced life support mechanism is testing a new method that removes carbon dioxide from the station’s atmosphere and recovers water for oxygen generation.
iss073e0118793 (May 27, 2025) --- Astronauts Takuya Onishi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and Nichole Ayers of NASA, Expedition 73 Commander and Flight Engineer respectively, replace components on an experimental carbon dioxide removal device aboard the International Space Station. Also called the Thermal Amine Scrubber, the advanced life support mechanism is testing a new method that removes carbon dioxide from the station’s atmosphere and recovers water for oxygen generation.
iss073e0118813 (May 28, 2025) --- JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut and Expedition 73 Commander Takuya Onishi replaces components on an experimental carbon dioxide removal device aboard the International Space Station. Also called the Thermal Amine Scrubber, the advanced life support mechanism is testing a new method that removes carbon dioxide from the station’s atmosphere and recovers water for oxygen generation.
iss073e0078896 (May 27, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers replaces components on an experimental carbon dioxide removal device. Also called the Thermal Amine Scrubber, the advanced life support mechanism is testing a new method that removes carbon dioxide from the station’s atmosphere and recovers water for oxygen generation.
iss073e0078897 (May 27, 2025) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Nichole Ayers replaces components on an experimental carbon dioxide removal device. Also called the Thermal Amine Scrubber, the advanced life support mechanism is testing a new method that removes carbon dioxide from the station’s atmosphere and recovers water for oxygen generation.
iss070e036986 (Dec. 8, 2023) --- ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut and Expedition 70 Commander Andreas Mogensen works on the Aquamembrane-3 technology demonstration in the International Space Station's Harmony module. The investigation explores the contaminant rejection and water transport capabilities of advanced life support equipment that may benefit future space missions and reduce water scarcity in arid conditions on Earth.
Jonathan Gleeson, Kennedy Space Center employee providing support for NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor (OSCAR) under the center’s Laboratory Support Services and Operations contract, installs OSCAR to the flight hardware that will carry it on its suborbital flight test. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees have worked on constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Jonathan Gleeson, Kennedy Space Center employee providing support for NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor (OSCAR) under the center’s Laboratory Support Services and Operations contract, assembles the flight hardware of OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Jonathan Gleeson, Kennedy Space Center employee providing support for NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor (OSCAR) under the center’s Laboratory Support Services and Operations contract, assembles the flight hardware of OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- U.S. Representative Dave Weldon addresses a large group attending the opening of a new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, that involves the University of Florida and NASA. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
AJ Nick, a robotic engineer with the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab, monitors the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) from a control room during testing in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
An integrated test of the MARCO POLO/Mars Pathfinder in-situ resource utilization, or ISRU, system takes place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A mockup of MARCO POLO, an ISRU propellant production technology demonstration simulated mission, is tested in a regolith bin with RASSOR 2.0, the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot. On the surface of Mars, mining robots like RASSOR will dig down into the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. Regolith also shows promise for both construction and creating elements for rocket fuel.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of the University of Florida Biotechnology Program, speaks during the opening ceremony to launch a new program called SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, that involves UF and NASA. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. Ferl will direct and be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA.
A team from the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab tests the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Tests use a gravity assist offload system to simulate reduced gravity conditions found on the Moon. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- U.S. Representative Dave Weldon addresses a large group attending the opening of a new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, that involves the University of Florida and NASA. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Dwarf wheat were photographed aboard the International Space Station in April 2002. Lessons from on-orbit research on plants will have applications to terrestrial agriculture as well as for long-term space missions. Alternative agricultural systems that can efficiently produce greater quantities of high-quality crops in a small area are important for future space expeditions. Also regenerative life-support systems that include plants will be an important component of long-term space missions. Data from the Biomass Production System (BPS) and the Photosynthesis Experiment and System Testing and Operations (PESTO) will advance controlled-environment agricultural systems and will help farmers produce better, healthier crops in a small area. This same knowledge is critical to closed-loop life support systems for spacecraft. The BPS comprises a miniature environmental control system for four plant growth chambers, all in the volume of two space shuttle lockers. The experience with the BPS on orbit is providing valuable design and operational lessons that will be incorporated into the Plant Growth Units. The objective of PESTO was to flight verify the BPS hardware and to determine how the microgravity environment affects the photosynthesis and metabolic function of Super Dwarf wheat and Brassica rapa (a member of the mustard family).
From left, Kennedy Space Center Mechanical Engineer Jaime Toro, NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor (OSCAR) data acquisition and testing; Brianna Sandoval, OSCAR intern; and Jonathan Gleeson, Kennedy employee providing support for OSCAR under the center’s Laboratory Support Services and Operations contract, assemble the flight hardware of OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Mike Martin, University of Florida vice president for agriculture and natural resources, speaks during the opening ceremony to launch a new program called SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, that involves UF and NASA. Officials from UF and NASA attended the event. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Thomas Cauvel, an intern assisting with software/electrical engineering on NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR, at Kennedy Space Center assembles the flight hardware. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Kennedy Space Center employees are working on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr. speaks at the opening ceremony to launch a new program called SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, involving the University of Florida and NASA. Officials from UF and NASA attended the event. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Thomas Cauvel, an intern assisting with software/electrical engineering on NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR, at Kennedy Space Center assembles the flight hardware. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
A Kennedy Space Center intern weighs trash simulant – comprised of different types of material that have been cut into tiny pieces – that will be utilized for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Drew Smith, a robotics engineer, makes adjustments to the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) during testing in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Smith and other members of the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab run tests, which simulates the Moon’s reduced gravity using the gravity assist offload system to see how RASSOR excavates regolith. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
From left, interns Isabella Aviles and Patrick Follis at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida cut up different types of material for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR, to use as a trash simulant during microgravity testing. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, recover water from trash and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Flight hardware for NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Rector, or OSCAR, is photographed at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
An intern at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida cuts up different types of material to be utilized as trash simulant for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
A Kennedy Space Center employee conducts thermal testing of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Pictured at Kennedy Space Center is trash simulant – comprised of different types of material that have been cut into tiny pieces – that will be utilized for NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
From left, Kennedy Space Center interns Brianna Sandoval and Patrick Follis, and Kennedy employee Jonathan Gleeson assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr. speaks to a large group attending the opening of a new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, that involves the University of Florida and NASA. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Kennedy Space Center employee Jonathan Gleeson (right) and Kennedy intern Patrick Follis assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
From left, Kennedy Space Center interns Brianna Sandoval and Patrick Follis, and Kennedy employee Jonathan Gleeson assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Mike Martin, University of Florida vice president for agriculture and natural resources, speaks during the opening ceremony to launch a new program called SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, that involves UF and NASA. Officials from UF and NASA attended the event. In the foreground are Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr. (left) and U.S. Rep. Dave Weldon (right). SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The Honorable Diana Morgan speaks to attendees at the opening ceremony kicking off a new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education. In the foreground are Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr. (left) and U.S. Representative Dave Weldon (right). The SABRE program is a combined effort of the University of Florida and NASA. Morgan is vice chair on the UF Board of Trustees. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Thomas Cauvel, an intern assisting with software/electrical engineering on NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR, at Kennedy Space Center assembles the flight hardware. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Florida Representative Bob Allen speaks to attendees at the opening ceremony kicking off a new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education. The program is a combined effort of the University of Florida and NASA. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Isabella Aviles, an intern at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, weighs trash simulant – comprised of different types of material that have been cut into tiny pieces – that will be utilized for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Kennedy Space Center employee Jonathan Gleeson (right) and Kennedy intern Patrick Follis assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the opening ceremony for the new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, four of the speakers gather around the SABRE poster. From left are University of Florida Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources Mike Martin, U.S. Representative Dave Weldon, Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr., and Florida Representative Bob Allen. Involving UF and NASA, SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of the University of Florida Biotechnology Program, will direct and be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA.
Patrick Follis, an intern at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, assembles the flight hardware for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the opening ceremony for the new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, key participants gather around the SABRE poster. From left are Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of the University of Florida Biotechnology Program, who will direct and be responsible for coordinating the research and education; William Knott, senior scientist in the NASA biological sciences office; U.S. Representative Dave Weldon; Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr.; and Florida Representative Bob Allen. Involving UF and NASA, SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville
NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR, is being prepared for suborbital flight testing at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for the suborbital flight test.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Patrick Follis, an intern at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cuts up different types of material for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR, to use as a trash simulant during microgravity testing. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Brianna Sandoval, an intern at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, assembles the flight hardware of the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Kennedy Space Center employees assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Kennedy Space Center intern Patrick Follis (left) and Kennedy employee Jonathan Gleeson assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Interns Brianna Sandoval (left) and Patrick Follis at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida assemble the flight hardware for the agency’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR. OSCAR is an Early Career Initiative project at the spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications, and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Center Director Roy D. Bridges Jr. shows his enthusiasm for the new program SABRE being launched at KSC. SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, involves the University of Florida and NASA. Bridges was speaking at the opening ceremony that included officials from both organizations. SABRE will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. SABRE will be directed by Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of UF's Biotechnology Program. He will be responsible for coordinating the research and education efforts of UF and NASA
Kennedy Space Center employees assemble the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
Drew Smith, a robotics engineer, makes adjustments to the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR) during testing in the regolith bin inside Swamp Works at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2019. Smith and other members of the Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations Lab run tests, which simulates the Moon’s reduced gravity using the gravity assist offload system to see how RASSOR excavates regolith. On the surface of the Moon, mining robots like RASSOR will excavate the regolith and take the material to a processing plant where usable elements such as hydrogen, oxygen and water can be extracted for life support systems. RASSOR can scoop up icy regolith which can be used to make operations on the Moon sustainable.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the opening ceremony for the new program known as SABRE, Space Agricultural Biotechnology Research and Education, William Knott speaks to attendees. Knott is senior scientist in the NASA biological sciences office. SABRE is a joint effort of the University of Florida and NASA and will focus on the discovery, development and application of the biological aspects of advanced life support strategies. The program will include faculty from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, who will be located at both KSC - in the state-owned Space Experiment Research and Processing Laboratory (SERPL) being built there - and UF in Gainesville. Robert Ferl, professor in the horticultural sciences department and assistant director of the University of Florida Biotechnology Program, will direct and be responsible for coordinating the research and education.
A Kennedy Space Center employee works on assembling the flight hardware of NASA’s Orbital Syngas Commodity Augmentation Reactor, or OSCAR – an Early Career Initiative project at the Florida spaceport that studies technology to convert trash and human waste into useful gasses such as methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. By processing small pieces of trash in a high-temperature reactor, OSCAR is advancing new and innovative technology for managing waste in space. OSCAR would reduce the amount of space needed for waste storage within a spacecraft, turn some waste into gasses that have energy storage and life support applications and ensure waste is no longer biologically active. A prototype has already been developed, and a team of Kennedy employees are in the process of constructing a new rig for suborbital flight testing.
STS-109 Astronaut Michael J. Massimino, mission specialist, perched on the Shuttle's robotic arm, is preparing to install the Electronic Support Module (ESM) in the aft shroud of the Hubble Space telescope (HST), with the assistance of astronaut James H. Newman (out of frame). The module will support a new experimental cooling system to be installed during the next day's fifth and final space walk of the mission. That cooling system is designed to bring the telescope's Near-Infrared Camera and Multi Spectrometer (NICMOS) back to life the which had been dormant since January 1999 when its original coolant ran out. The Space Shuttle Columbia STS-109 mission lifted off March 1, 2002 with goals of repairing and upgrading the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama had the responsibility for the design, development, and construction of the HST, which is the most powerful and sophisticated telescope ever built. In addition to the installation of the experimental cooling system for the Hubble's Near-Infrared Camera and NICMOS, STS-109 upgrades to the HST included replacement of the solar array panels, replacement of the power control unit (PCU), and replacement of the Faint Object Camera (FOC) with a new advanced camera for Surveys (ACS). Lasting 10 days, 22 hours, and 11 minutes, the STS-109 mission was the 108th flight overall in NASA's Space Shuttle Program.
On Saturday, November 26, NASA is scheduled to launch the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission featuring Curiosity, the largest and most advanced rover ever sent to the Red Planet. The Curiosity rover bristles with multiple cameras and instruments, including Goddard's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. By looking for evidence of water, carbon, and other important building blocks of life in the Martian soil and atmosphere, SAM will help discover whether Mars ever had the potential to support life. Curiosity will be delivered to Gale crater, a 96-mile-wide crater that contains a record of environmental changes in its sedimentary rock, in August 2012. ----- Goddard scientist Jennifer Eigenbrode injected a chemical into a rock sample and then heated the test tube to determine whether the sample-preparation method preserved the sample's molecular structure. Her testing proved successful, ultimately leading to the experiment's inclusion on the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Chris Gunn <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a></b> <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a></b> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. <b>Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a></b> <b>Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a></b> <b>Find us on <a href="http://instagrid.me/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a></b>
On Saturday, November 26, NASA is scheduled to launch the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission featuring Curiosity, the largest and most advanced rover ever sent to the Red Planet. The Curiosity rover bristles with multiple cameras and instruments, including Goddard's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. By looking for evidence of water, carbon, and other important building blocks of life in the Martian soil and atmosphere, SAM will help discover whether Mars ever had the potential to support life. Curiosity will be delivered to Gale crater, a 96-mile-wide crater that contains a record of environmental changes in its sedimentary rock, in August 2012. ----- NASA image November 18, 2010 The Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument is considered one of the most complicated instruments ever to land on the surface of another planet. Equipped with a gas chromatograph, a quadruple mass spectrometer, and a tunable laser spectrometer, SAM will carry out the initial search for organic compounds when the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover lands in 2012. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Ed Campion <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a></b> <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a></b> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. <b>Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a></b> <b>Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a></b> <b>Find us on <a href="http://instagrid.me/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a></b>
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This Super Guppy aircraft rolls down the runway after landing at NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility. It has flown to the Center to pick up and transport the common module structural test element to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The common module is an aluminum canister used as a structural test element for an actual Space Station flight element. At Marshall, the module will be used to conduct advanced environmental control and life support testing for future NASA exploration missions. The Super Guppy aircraft has a unique hinged nose that can open more than 200 degrees, allowing large pieces of cargo to be loaded and unloaded from the front. Guppy aircraft were used in several past space programs, including Gemini, Apollo and Skylab, to transport spacecraft components. NASA personnel at Ellington Field outfitted the Super Guppy with a specially designed cradle to be used when carrying International Space Station components. The first Guppy aircraft was developed in 1962, designed specifically for NASA operations by Aero Spacelines of California. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This Super Guppy aircraft is parked on NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility after landing. It has flown to the Center to pick up and transport the common module structural test element to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The common module is an aluminum canister used as a structural test element for an actual Space Station flight element. At Marshall, the module will be used to conduct advanced environmental control and life support testing for future NASA exploration missions. The Super Guppy aircraft has a unique hinged nose that can open more than 200 degrees, allowing large pieces of cargo to be loaded and unloaded from the front. Guppy aircraft were used in several past space programs, including Gemini, Apollo and Skylab, to transport spacecraft components. NASA personnel at Ellington Field outfitted the Super Guppy with a specially designed cradle to be used when carrying International Space Station components. The first Guppy aircraft was developed in 1962, designed specifically for NASA operations by Aero Spacelines of California. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This front view of the Super Guppy aircraft, parked on NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility, appears more like a hot air balloon. In fact, it is the bulbous nose which, when unhinged, can open more than 200 degrees and allow large pieces of cargo to be loaded and unloaded from the front. The aircraft has flown to the Center to pick up and transport the common module structural test element to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The common module is an aluminum canister used as a structural test element for an actual Space Station flight element. At Marshall, the module will be used to conduct advanced environmental control and life support testing for future NASA exploration missions. Guppy aircraft were used in several past space programs, including Gemini, Apollo and Skylab, to transport spacecraft components. NASA personnel at Ellington Field in Texas outfitted the Super Guppy with a specially designed cradle to be used when carrying International Space Station components. The first Guppy aircraft was developed in 1962, designed specifically for NASA operations by Aero Spacelines of California. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This Super Guppy aircraft approaches landing at NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility. It has flown to the Center to pick up and transport the common module structural test element to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The common module is an aluminum canister used as a structural test element for an actual Space Station flight element. At Marshall, the module will be used to conduct advanced environmental control and life support testing for future NASA exploration missions. The Super Guppy aircraft has a unique hinged nose that can open more than 200 degrees, allowing large pieces of cargo to be loaded and unloaded from the front. Guppy aircraft were used in several past space programs, including Gemini, Apollo and Skylab, to transport spacecraft components. NASA personnel at Ellington Field outfitted the Super Guppy with a specially designed cradle to be used when carrying International Space Station components. The first Guppy aircraft was developed in 1962, designed specifically for NASA operations by Aero Spacelines of California. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - This Super Guppy aircraft touches down on the runway at NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility. It has flown to the Center to pick up and transport the common module structural test element to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The common module is an aluminum canister used as a structural test element for an actual Space Station flight element. At Marshall, the module will be used to conduct advanced environmental control and life support testing for future NASA exploration missions. The Super Guppy aircraft has a unique hinged nose that can open more than 200 degrees, allowing large pieces of cargo to be loaded and unloaded from the front. Guppy aircraft were used in several past space programs, including Gemini, Apollo and Skylab, to transport spacecraft components. NASA personnel at Ellington Field outfitted the Super Guppy with a specially designed cradle to be used when carrying International Space Station components. The first Guppy aircraft was developed in 1962, designed specifically for NASA operations by Aero Spacelines of California. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
Great Barrier Reef - August 8th, 1999 Description: What might be mistaken for dinosaur bones being unearthed at a paleontological dig are some of the individual reefs that make up the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest tropical coral reef system. The reef stretches more than 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) along the coast of Queensland, Australia. It supports astoundingly complex and diverse communities of marine life and is the largest structure on the planet built by living organisms. Credit: USGS/NASA/Landsat 7 To learn more about the Landsat satellite go to: <a href="http://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/" rel="nofollow">landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/</a> <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a></b> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. <b>Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a></b> <b>Join us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a></b>
<b>Who Should Be TIME's Person of the Year 2012? - The Mars Rover! VOTE here: <a href="http://ti.me/YxJU1i" rel="nofollow">ti.me/YxJU1i</a></b> Caption - SAM Team celebrates a picture perfect landing! Pictured from left to rights: Mehdi Benna, Laurie Leshin, Chris Webster, Will Brinckerhoff, Paul Mahaffy, Pan Conrad, Florence Tan, and Jen Eigenbrode. Credit: NASA ----- The Curiosity rover bristles with multiple cameras and instruments, including Goddard's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. By looking for evidence of water, carbon, and other important building blocks of life in the Martian soil and atmosphere, SAM will help discover whether Mars ever had the potential to support life. Curiosity was delivered to Gale crater, a 96-mile-wide crater that contains a record of environmental changes in its sedimentary rock, in August 2012. Related links: <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html" rel="nofollow">www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html</a> <a href="http://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/699/marsSAM.shtml" rel="nofollow">science.gsfc.nasa.gov/699/marsSAM.shtml</a> <a href="http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/" rel="nofollow">mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/</a> <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a></b> <b><a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a></b> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. <b>Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a></b> <b>Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a></b> <b>Find us on <a href="http://instagram.com/nasagoddard?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a></b>
A NASA-funded program provided valuable information for responders and groups supporting the recovery efforts for the Aug. 24, 2016, magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck central Italy. The earthquake caused significant loss of life and property damage in the town of Amatrice. To assist in the disaster response efforts, scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Caltech, both in Pasadena, California, obtained and used radar imagery of the earthquake's hardest-hit region to discriminate areas of damage from that event. The views indicate the extent of damage caused by the earthquake and subsequent aftershocks in and around Amatrice, based on changes to the ground surface detected by radar. The color variations from yellow to red indicate increasingly more significant ground surface change. The damage maps were created from data obtained before and after the earthquake by satellites belonging to the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The radar-derived damage maps compare well with a damage map produced by the European Commission Copernicus Emergency Management Service based upon visual inspection of high-resolution pre-earthquake aerial photographs and post-earthquake satellite optical imagery, and provide broader geographic coverage of the earthquake's impact in the region. The X-band COSMO-SkyMed (CSK) data were provided through a research collaboration with ASI and were acquired on July 3, August 20, and August 28, 2016. The L-band ALOS/PALSAR-2 data were provided by JAXA through its science research program and were acquired on September 9, 2015, January 27, 2016, and August 24, 2016. The radar data were processed by the Advanced Rapid Imaging and Analysis (ARIA) team at JPL and Caltech. ARIA is a NASA-funded project that is building an automated system for demonstrating the ability to rapidly and reliably provide GPS and satellite data to support the local, national and international hazard monitoring and response communities. Using space-based imagery of disasters, ARIA data products can provide rapid assessments of the geographic region impacted by a disaster, as well as detailed imaging of the locations where damage occurred. Radar can "see" through clouds day and night and measure centimeter-level ground movements. NASA is partnering with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) to develop the NASA ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission that will routinely provide systematic SAR observations of Earth's land and ice-covered surfaces at least twice every 12 days, enabling greater scientific understanding of the dynamic processes that drive the Earth system and natural hazards, as well as providing actionable support for disaster response and recovery. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21091
NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft will carry a special message when it launches in October 2024 and heads toward Jupiter's moon Europa. The moon shows strong evidence of an ocean under its icy crust, with more than twice the amount of water of all of Earth's oceans combined. A triangular metal plate, seen here, will honor that connection to Earth. The plate is made of tantalum metal and is about 7 by 11 inches (18 by 28 centimeters). Engraved on both sides, it seals an opening in the electronics vault, which houses the spacecraft's sensitive electronics. The side shown here features U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón's handwritten "In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa," and will be affixed with a silicon microchip stenciled with more than 2.6 million names submitted by the public. The microchip will be placed at the center of the illustration of a bottle amid the Jovian system – a reference to NASA's "Message in a Bottle" campaign, which invited the public to send their names with the spacecraft. The artwork includes the Drake Equation, which was formulated by astronomer Frank Drake in 1961 to estimate the possibility of finding advanced civilizations beyond Earth. Also featured is a reference to the radio frequencies considered plausible for interstellar communication, symbolizing how humanity uses this radio band to listen for messages from the cosmos. These particular frequencies match the radio waves emitted in space by the components of water and are known by astronomers as the "water hole." On the plate, they are depicted as radio emission lines. The plate includes a portrait of one of the founders of planetary science, Ron Greeley, whose early efforts to develop a Europa mission two decades ago laid the foundation for Europa Clipper. In the spirit of the Voyager spacecraft's Golden Record, which carries sounds and images to convey the richness and diversity of life on Earth, the layered message on Europa Clipper aims to spark the imagination and offer a unifying vision. Europa Clipper, set to launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, will arrive at the Jupiter system in 2030 and conduct about 50 flybys of the moon Europa. The mission's main science goal is to determine whether there are places below Europa, that could support life. The mission's three main science objectives are to determine the thickness of the moon's icy shell and its surface interactions with the ocean below, to investigate its composition, and to characterize its geology. The mission's detailed exploration of Europa will help scientists better understand the astrobiological potential for habitable worlds beyond our planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26062