Station Science Top News: May 5, 2022
The International Space Station Fish Scales study demonstrated that when regenerative fish scales are subjected to physical stimuli in space, they react similarly to mammalian bone. Goldfish scales have many of the same proteins, minerals, and cell types as mammalian bone, allowing scientists to use results from fish scale experiments to develop hypotheses about how human bones might respond to space.
Researchers harvested regenerative fish scales from goldfish for the study and subjected them to three times the force of Earth’s gravity, simulated microgravity, and microgravity aboard station. In microgravity, more cells were produced to mediate physical damage and prevent bone loss. This indicates fish scales could be used in future bone research — and these results could help keep future astronauts safe on deep space missions.
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After more than six months aboard the space station, the astronauts of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-3 mission have returned home. These crew members contributed to hundreds of scientific investigations and technology demonstrations while aboard the orbiting laboratory.
Here is a look at some of the scientific milestones accomplished during the Crew-3 mission:
- Crew-3 conducted the space agriculture study Plant Habitat-05, which explored genetic expression in cotton cell cultures, potentially improving crop production on Earth.
- After the ACME experiments wrapped up, Crew-3 installed the Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction (SoFIE) facility. This hardware will continue combustion research on station, providing a wide range of solid-material combustion and fire suppression studies.
- The crew worked on Concrete Hardening, which explores how concrete hardens in microgravity. This study could inform future space construction techniques.
- The astronauts worked on the SQuARE experiment, adapted from the standard archaeological technique on Earth called the “shovel test pit,” and tracked the use and movement of objects in several sample sites throughout the orbiting laboratory. What we learn could inform design of future space habitats.
Read more here and watch the Crew-3 science highlights video below.
NASA astronaut and Expedition 66 Flight Engineer Raja Chari sequences DNA from bacteria samples using the BioMole Facility to understand the microbial environment on the International Space Station. Credits: NASA
