ISS National Laboratory
Fostering scientific and technological innovation, advancing US leadership in commercial space, and inspiring the next generation.
About ISS National Lab
In an effort to expand the research opportunities of this unparalleled platform, the ISS was designated as a U.S. National Laboratory in 2005 by Congress, enabling space research and development access to a broad range of commercial, academic, and government users.
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News
Up to date information on award announcements, research heading to the space station, educational opportunities and much more!
Press Releases and Updates
Areas of Research
The International Space Station National Laboratory is a functioning research laboratory with the tools and facilities needed to translate traditional ground-based experiments into flight-ready payloads.
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Solicitations
The International Space Station National Laboratory is a crewed low Earth orbit (LEO) platform for research, development, and education that inspires innovation and provides opportunities for discovery to benefit humankind.
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ISS National Lab Reports
As part of strategic initiatives to enable science in space for life on Earth, the ISS National Lab hosts workshops in the life and physical sciences, remote sensing, and technology to explore research areas with high likelihood for rapid knowledge advancement and the potential to support commercialization of low Earth orbit.
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ISS National Lab Contact
If you have any questions or require general information from the ISS National Laboratory, here are some ways you can contact them.
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Space-Grown Brain Organoids Help Advance New Neurological Treatment
Did you know some viruses don’t cause illness and can instead be used to treat disease? Biotechnology startup Axonis Therapeutics reprogrammed a virus to carry a novel gene therapy to neurons to treat neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and spinal cord injury. The company needed a way to test the therapeutic in a mature human brain model, which is difficult to produce on Earth. To address this challenge, Axonis leveraged the International Space Station National Laboratory to quickly grow 3D human brain organoids and test the therapeutic.
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Station Opportunity
Up to $1.6 Million in Funding Available for NSF Tissue Engineering Research
Solicitation now open for multiple awards supporting space-based tissue engineering and mechanobiology research
For the eighth consecutive year, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding a solicitation seeking projects that utilize the International Space Station National Laboratory to advance tissue engineering and mechanobiology research. Through this solicitation, NSF will provide up to $1.6 million in total funding for multiple projects.
Learn More about Up to $1.6 Million in Funding Available for NSF Tissue Engineering Research
Publication Highlights Groundbreaking Physical Science Research in Space
A paper published in Gravitational and Space Research unveils insights gained from International Space Station National Laboratory-sponsored research on transport phenomena, fundamental physical processes involving momentum, energy, and mass transfer. Transport phenomena describe the ways in which heat and matter move through their surroundings, for example, how heat radiates from a stove or how a scent fills the room. Exploring these dynamics outside Earth’s gravitational forces could lead to revolutionary advances in pharmaceuticals and other commercial applications.
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Research to Test Cold Welding for Spacecraft Repairs
Imagine a spacecraft hurtling through deep space when suddenly, it’s struck by a rogue piece of space debris. In the harsh vacuum of space, traditional repair methods falter. Enter ASTROBEAT, an innovative experiment sponsored by the ISS National Laboratory, poised to advance spacecraft repairs using cold welding—a technique akin to patching a tire while soaring through space.
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Space-Based 3D Cell Culture Study Paves Way for New Cancer Therapies
In October, we think pink, and for a good reason—one out of every eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, and each year, 2 million women are given this frightening diagnosis. Biotechnology startup MicroQuin leveraged the International Space Station National Laboratory to grow 3D breast and prostate cancer cell cultures to learn more about how these cancers develop and grow. However, the research team found something incredible that could lead to a way to treat not just breast and prostate cancers but all cancers.
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