Worms in Space for Outreach on Earth: Space Life Science Activities for the Classroom

Gaffney, Christopher; Pollard, Amelia K.; Deane, Colleen S.; Cooke, Michael G.; Balsamo, Michele; Hewitt, Jennifer; Vanapalli, Siva A.; Szewczyk, Nathaniel J.; Etheridge, Timothy; Phillips, Bethan E.

doi:10.2478/gsr-2018-0011

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 20 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…As mentioned above, existing hardware allows the ECs to be flown with or without power, in or not in a temperature-controlled incubator and using a variety of previously developed hardware inserts. We have recently used this platform for the Molecular Muscle Experiment [10] and have recently been granted one of the first UK national payloads to fly to the ISS. In our current flight project, Molecular Muscle Experiment-2, we have been granted permission to fly three student led experiments within these ECs.…”

Section: A European Platform For Student Spaceflight Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Commercial access for UK/ESA student experiments on board the ISS

Gaffney¹,

Nartallo²,

Neri³

et al. 2020

Proceedings of the 3rd Symposium on Space Educational Activities

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

School students in the US have the ability to commercially fly experiments on-board the International Space Station (ISS) via programmes like the Nanoracks sponsored Student Spaceflight Experiment Program (SSEP). Programs like SSEP do allow international schools to participate but similar programmes do not currently exist within the European Space Agency (ESA). ESA does, however, support commercial access to space via companies like Airbus and Kayser Italia. A key principle of SSEP is that students propose to fly experiments that will work within existing spaceflight hardware. This is similar to the idea of using standardized CubeSat platforms in education and ESA's long-standing use of standardized Experiment Containers (ECs). These ECs form the starting point for Airbus and Kayser Italia's commercial access programmes. In 2018 we were selected by the UK Space Agency to develop and fly a UK national payload to the ISS. This payload will conduct scientific experiments proposed by ourselves, international partners, and schools in the UK. All experiments will take place inside ECs that are refurbished, and flight qualified in the UK. If we can successfully conduct student experiments during this mission, we will have demonstrated the possibility of conducting UK student experiments in space via a UK company. This should pave the way for UK-based commercial access to the ISS that could be used by schools much like the US based SSEP.

show abstract

Section: A European Platform For Student Spaceflight Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Commercial access for UK/ESA student experiments on board the ISS

Gaffney¹,

Nartallo²,

Neri³

et al. 2020

Proceedings of the 3rd Symposium on Space Educational Activities

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Molecular Muscle Experiment: Hardware and Operational Lessons for Future Astrobiology Space Experiments

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Biology experiments in space seek to increase our understanding of what happens to life beyond Earth and how we can safely send life beyond Earth. Spaceflight is associated with many (mal)adaptations in physiology, including decline in musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, vestibular, and immune systems. Biological experiments in space are inherently challenging to implement. Development of hardware and validation of experimental conditions are critical to ensure the collection of high-quality data. The model organism Caenorhabditis elegans has been studied in space for more than 20 years to better understand spaceflightinduced (patho)physiology, particularly spaceflight-induced muscle decline. These experiments have used a variety of hardware configurations. Despite this, hardware used in the past was not available for our most recent experiment, the Molecular Muscle Experiment (MME). Therefore, we had to design and validate flight hardware for MME. MME provides a contemporary example of many of the challenges faced by researchers conducting C. elegans experiments onboard the International Space Station. Here, we describe the hardware selection and validation, in addition to the ground-based experiment scientific validation testing. These experiences and operational solutions allow others to replicate and/or improve our experimental design on future missions.

show abstract

Worms in Space for Outreach on Earth: Space Life Science Activities for the Classroom

Cited by 2 publications

References 20 publications

Commercial access for UK/ESA student experiments on board the ISS

Commercial access for UK/ESA student experiments on board the ISS

Molecular Muscle Experiment: Hardware and Operational Lessons for Future Astrobiology Space Experiments

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About