NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Scientists and payload developers can get more information on International Space Station research facilities by contacting the ISS Payloads Office or at 281-244-6187.

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Overview | Description | Applications | Operations | Results | Publications | Imagery

Facility Overview


Brief Facility Summary

The Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) is a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) subrack facility; it is an incubator with an artificial gravity generator. CBEF is housed in the Saibo (living cell) Experiment Rack with the Clean Bench (CB).

Facility Manager(s)

Tai Nakamura, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Japan

Co-Facility Manager(s)

Information Pending

Facility Developer(s)

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Tsukuba, , Japan

Sponsoring Agency

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

Expeditions Assigned

17,18,19/20,21/22

Previous ISS Missions

Information Pending

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Facility Description

Facility Overview

• The Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) is a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) subrack facility; it is an incubator with an artificial gravity generator that resides in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM), Kibo, onboard the International Space Station (ISS).



• CBEF is located within the Saibo (living cell) Experiment Rack with the Clean Bench (CB) subrack facility.

Description

The Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) is a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) subrack facility located in the Saibo (living cell) Experiment Rack. The CBEF is used in various life science experiments, such as cultivating cells and plants in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). The CBEF consists of an incubator and control equipment for control and communications. The incubator unit consists of a microgravity compartment and a 1-G compartment. The 1-G compartment has a centrifuge that can control gravity from 0.1 to 2.0 G during gravity contrast experiments with the microgravity compartment. The CBEF incubator can control temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide concentration for cultivation of cells and plants.

• Temperature: 15 - 40 °C


• Humidity: 20 to 80 percent relative humidity


• Carbon dioxide concentration: 0 to 10 percent by volume

CBEF provides a standard canister with a common interface to the Biological Equipment Units (BEUs). Scientists can develop BEUs easily using common interfaces of the standard canister. The BEU can receive power through a connector and transfer analog signal and video signals to the CBEF.

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Operations

Facility Operations

Saibo, which contains the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) and other subrack facilities, was transported to the International Space Station (ISS) in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Experiment Logistics Module (ELM). Once the Kibo was attached to the ISS, Saibo was transferred by the crew to a rack location inside the Kibo. After the rack was installed and checked out, it was ready for subrack facility operations and is operated as the science is scheduled. All condition parameters of CBEF can be set or changed from the ground by the telemetry command, or the experiment parameters can be preset with the user program to be controlled automatically.

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Results/More Information

Information Pending

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Availability

Onboard ISS

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Results Publications

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Ground Based Results Publications

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ISS Patents

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Related Publications

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Related Websites

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Imagery

Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) in the Saibo Rack. Image courtesy of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
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NASA image: ISS018-E-034090 (20 Feb. 2009) Astronaut Sandra Magnus, Expedition 18 flight engineer, uses a communication system near the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) in the Kibo laboratory of the International Space Station. Image courtesy of NASA.
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NASA image: ISS18-E-37097 Sandra Magnus in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) as she works with the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) in support of the RadGene Experiment during Expedition 18.
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NASA Image: ISS020E005881 - Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata, Expedition 20 flight engineer, conducts the current periodic humidity check on the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) in the Saibo Rack in the Kibo laboratory of the International Space Station.
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NASA Image: ISS025E008416 - NASA astronaut Shannon Walker, Expedition 25 flight engineer, uses a computer while working at the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) in the Kibo laboratory of the International Space Station.
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