A small but mighty piece of lab equipment, about the size of a cellphone, has arrived at the International Space Station after launching with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission. NASA aims to use the off-the-shelf device, called a microplate reader, to conduct vital biological research in space and get real-time access to data.
Demonstrations like this are part of NASA’s Commercially Enabled Rapid Space Science (CERISS) initiative, which partners with industry to develop transformative research capabilities and increase the pace and productivity of space science. NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences Division is leading the demonstration in collaboration with the agency’s International Space Station Program.
The immediate benefit of using a microplate reader for space science is speed. Scientists can get data as soon as testing is complete, rather than waiting for samples to be stored, returned to Earth, and analyzed in ground labs. In-situ analysis like this — testing done on-site rather than after sample return — could reduce the delays, complications, and costs of bringing materials back to Earth.
Traditional microplate readers on the ground are typically much larger — often bigger than a microwave — but NASA’s tests will use a version that is not much larger than a cellphone.
For now, the microplate reader device requires a trained astronaut to run tests. But proving commercial lab equipment can work in low Earth orbit could open doors for future automation and even more advanced testing capabilities.
In the future, scientists could test astronaut samp …