20 Breakthroughs from 20 Years
Fundamental
Disease Research: Space station research contributes to understanding diseases like
Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Cancer, Asthma, and Heart Disease.Discovery
of Steadily Burning Cool Flames: The Flame Extinguishing Experiment (FLEX) revealed fuel
droplets burning without visible flames at cooler temperatures.New
Water Purification Systems: Space station technology helps provide clean water to at-risk
areas, recycling 93% of water for astronauts.Drug
Development Using Protein Crystals: Protein crystal experiments on the ISS offer insights
into disease treatments.Methods
to Combat Muscle Atrophy and Bone Loss: ISS studies aid in understanding and mitigating bone
and muscle loss, applicable to conditions like osteoporosis.Exploring
the Fifth State of Matter: NASA's Cold Atom Lab on the ISS produces a Bose-Einstein
condensate, shedding light on quantum mechanics.Understanding
How Our Bodies Change in Microgravity: Long-term ISS stays reveal how the human body adapts
to microgravity.Testing
Tissue Chips in Space: ISS experiments with tissue chips help understand microgravity's
impact on human health.Stimulating
the Low-Earth Orbit Economy: The ISS contributes to a growing commercial space economy worth
over $345 billion.Growing
Food in Microgravity: Techniques for growing food in space help prepare for long-duration
missions.Deployment
of CubeSats from Station: Over 250 CubeSats have been launched from the ISS, advancing space
research.Monitoring
Our Planet from Space: The ISS serves as a platform for studying Earth's water, air, land,
and vegetation.Collecting
Data on Cosmic Particles: The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-02 on the ISS collects data to
understand the universe's composition.Understanding
Pulsars and Black Holes: Instruments like NICER and MAXI on the ISS enhance knowledge of
celestial objects.Student
Access to an Orbiting Laboratory: The ISS offers students opportunities to conduct
microgravity experiments.Identifying
Unknown Microbes in Space: The Genes in Space-3 project enables real-time microbe
identification in space.Advancements
in Colloid Research: Colloid research on the ISS impacts diverse fields like toothpaste, 3D
printing, and pharmaceuticals.Evolution
of Fluid Physics Research: ISS fluid studies progress from fundamental research to practical
applications.3D
Printing in Microgravity: The first item was 3D printed on the space station in 2014,
exploring printing with recycled materials and human tissue.Responding
to Natural Disasters: Crew imagery from the ISS supports global disaster response efforts.