Advancing Commercial Space

The Earth's biosphere is the most sophisticated complex adaptive system known to exist in the entire universe and has persisted for over 4 billion years. A complex adaptive system is a network of interacting adaptive systems whose nonlinear dynamics and emergent behaviors are difficult to predict and control; therefore, for such systems, past performance is no guarantee of future results, which is particularly the case for the Earths biosphere during a period of exponential technological growth. NASA Ames Research Center presents a novel, patent-pending adjustable-autonomous intelligent systems approach for developing sustainable, small-scale reproductions of subsets of the Earths biosphere that can be distributed both on and beyond Earth, for improving the quality of life for all life, expanding the diversity of life, studying and protecting life, as well as enabling life to permanently extend beyond Earth.

Sample preparation is a common bottleneck in genetic analysis. Tools that reduce time and effort are of great value in a laboratory setting. There is a need for a genetic analysis/detection system that is not only mobile, ruggedized, and easy-to-use but that also provides an enclosed fluid handling, which diminishes the risks of Ribonucleic acid (RNA) contamination and degradation during processing. NASA Ames has developed a novel assay methodology and suite of devices to isolate nucleic acids and prepare samples for Reverse Transcriptase quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction analysis that solves the problem of contamination and degradation. Gene expression analysis reveals valuable information about molecular and cellular mechanisms that can be applied not only for protecting human health during space missions but also for fundamental biology investigations and commercial drug discovery efforts on earth. This invention enables an end-to-end ability to process a biological sample for gene expression analysis - from raw tissue to data.

The high water-to-biomass ratio characteristic of conventional algae cultivation systems requires large energy inputs for pumping and mixing the culture during cultivation, as well as for dewatering and harvesting the resultant biomass. In light of this challenge, the Surface-Adhering BioReactor (SABR) cultivates micro-organisms as densely packed biofilms rather than in suspension, leading to an approximately 100-fold reduction in the water-to-biomass ratio of the system. Moreover, the mechanism of nutrient delivery to the cells is completely passive, eliminating the need for a pump. This mechanism is also independent of gravitational and inertial forces, making it an ideal candidate for human life support in space. The SABR is ideally suited for cultivating shear-sensitive cells, which can be product-secreting candidates due to their potential lack of cell walls. It reduces the number of steps in the cascade of cultivation, harvesting, dewatering, and extraction, favorably impacting the energetic and economic sustainability.

During atmospheric entry of blunt-body vehicles, such as a crew capsule or planetary probe, travel through the supersonic and transonic regimes can induce divergent instabilities due to dynamic stability issues, the fundamental understanding of which remains incomplete. Traditional qualification methods such as ballistic ranges, wind tunnels, and computation simulations can provide aerodynamic performance data for various flight conditions, but each has limitations or requires extensive validation. To address the need to understand dynamic stability issues of re-entry vehicles, NASA Ames has developed a multistage flight system architecture capable of testing vehicles through supersonic and transonic Mach numbers. This architecture enables the acquisition of rich, flight-relevant data related to dynamic stability and other key aerodynamic parameters.

The Cost Optimized Test of Spacecraft Avionics and Technologies (COTSAT) was specifically developed to reduce the cost of designing and building spacecraft technologies while enabling rapid prototyping. The prototype spacecraft, also known as CheapSat, is the first of what could potentially be a series of rapidly produced low-cost spacecraft for science experiments and technology demonstration. The spacecraft platform is designed to accommodate low-cost access to space for variable remote-sensing payloads, while maintaining an architecture allowing future expansion for potential Space Life Sciences payloads.

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a novel, double capsule control system that allows for high temperature and high-pressure geologic research to be performed in a contained environment relevant to a broad array of materials. It can also yield the speciation of redox-sensitive elements and is even capable of creating geologic conditions necessary to birth diamonds when used in conjunction with a multi-anvil press. Users of this technology can specify a wide range of oxygen fugacity (fO2) values during experiments. fO2 is a measure of rock oxidation that influences planetary structure and evolution and contributes directly to the study of our galactic origins. It commands some of the fundamental chemical and physical properties in planetary materials, including electrical conductivity, grain-growth kinetics, and phase stability. This technology was previously used to replicate fO2 environments relevant to core samples from the Moon and those obtained from the Earths deep crust. It may be further extended to higher pressure and higher temperature studies where greater control of a specific experimental sample environment might allow unique chemical bonding and reactivity that would not be possible in systems that utilize the standard approaches.

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a modular container system, or “MCS” for short, that provides a portable extension to laboratory gloveboxes for the contaminant-free transport and storage of samples of interest. Designed to minimize the oxygen concentration within its sample container, the MCS has been designed for containment of precious extraterrestrial sample material, and can readily facilitate sample transport to members of the global scientific community for analysis. A sample of interest needs to be kept in a low-oxygen environment during transport and storage that is comparable to its working envi-ronment within a science glovebox. Previous container designs could not provide the low-oxygen environment for more than a couple days in ambient conditions. The MCS has been tested in various configurations and sizes and is designed to provide a stable low-oxygen environment ranging from months to years. The MCS provides a high-value proposition for industries where sample or component integrity is compromised by trace oxygen and moisture. The Modular Container System (MCS) is now available for patent licens-ing. Please note that NASA does not manufacture products itself for commercial sale.

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a technique to grow 3D tissue constructs, similar to human bone, in a laboratory environment. Problems arise when studying both the normal state and pathophysiology of bone. As an organ system, it is slow growing, so the time to study and observe a response to a particular stimulus is relatively long. Our bioengineers have discovered that osteoblast and osteoclast cell types can be induced to aggregate into large spheroids in a specific spatial relationship under certain culture conditions when placed in a rotating-wall tissue-culture vessel (shown above). The ability to construct a 3D model of such mineralized tissue on-demand, using a co-culture of human cells that differentiate and spatially arrange themselves in a physiologically relevant manner, is a major step forward in how the process of bone formation and remodeling can be studied.

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a technology that yields three-dimensional (3D) tissue-like assemblies (TLAs) of human broncho-epithelial (HBE) cells for in vitro research on infection of humans by respiratory viruses. Compared to traditional two-dimensional (2D) monolayer cell culture, the 3D TLAs more accurately represent the active environment present in respiratory infections. It offers a cost-effective platform that functions like in vivo human tissue, reducing the need for human subject testing and supporting a more controlled testing environment free from immune system limitations. 3D TLAs provide an opportunity to study the tolerance to bioactive ingredients, the impacts of developing vaccinations on respiratory tissues, and other applications directed to product development for the cosmetics and textile industries.

NASA Johnson Space Center has developed the Micro-Organ Device (MOD) platform technology that serves as a drug screening system with human or animal cell micro-organs to supplement and reduce animal studies while potentially increasing the success of clinical trials. The technology was originally developed to evaluate pharmaceuticals in zero gravity to accelerate development and validation of countermeasures for humans in space as well as evaluate space and planetary stressors on a biological level. The MOD is a microfluidic device containing a variety of microstructures and assemblies of cells, all designed to mimic a complex in vivo microenvironment by modeling one or more in vivo micro-organ structures, the architectures and composition of the extracellular matrices in the organs of interest, and the in vivo fluid flows. The fully automated technology can be used to perform early stage in vivo drug screening without the use of animal experimentation, saving time, money, and resources. This NASA Technology is available for your company to license and develop into a commercial product. NASA does not manufacture products for commercial sale.

JSC is looking to interested parties to license and commercialize this patented technology. Innovators at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) developed a patented self-contained device for isolating deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), ribonucleic acid (RNA), proteins, and cells without using pipettes or centrifuges. Composed of reagents, functionalized membranes, and multi-way valves and pumps, this novel fluidic system enables automation of highly accurate real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology to isolate genetic material from organisms and microorganisms for molecular analysis. The device is self-enclosed and leak-proof, so users are protected from chemically hazardous reagents. Developed to enable molecular diagnostics aboard the International Space Station (ISS), this easy-to-use analysis tool can be fully automated and programmed, extending laboratory isolation protocols to numerous applications in health care, forensics, and field biology.

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a handheld digital microscope to fill the critical microscopy needs of human space exploration by providing flight crews in situ hematological diagnostic and tracking ability to assess and monitor crew health in the absence of gravity. Although currently in use aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to work in conjunction with NASA’s handheld slide staining system, the microscope may have numerous applications here on Earth. The microscope is entirely self-contained, and includes optics, illumination, high-resolution imaging hardware, wireless enabled single board computer with scalable power and memory, and rechargeable battery. The microscope also acts as an internet access point and connects via Bluetooth to smart devices for wireless image transfer and remote control. The microscope is durable enough to support field use while providing submicron imaging that would typically necessitate the use of larger more expensive benchtop microscopes. Cost of manufacturing the microscope may be relatively inexpensive through the utilization of 3D-printed components, and COTS hardware such as interchangeable microscope objectives. The handheld digital microscope is at technology readiness level (TRL) 8 (actual system completed and "flight qualified" through test and demonstration), and is now available to license. NASA does not manufacture products for commercial sale.

Researchers at Kennedy Space Center have developed a technology that generates plasma activated water in pH ranges that allow for the addition of nitrates and other nutrients to the water while maintaining a healthy pH for plants. A plasma torch is used to treat inedible biomass, generating ash containing nutrients useful for plant growth. The same plasma torch is also used to treat water, which results in the formation of nitric acid that lowers the pH of the water. Adding the plasma generated ash to the plasma treated water can balance the pH of the water to make it suitable for plant growth while simultaneously adding nutrients recycled from the inedible biomass to further enhance plant development. Plasma treatment of water to high and low pH extremes can also be used for sanitation purposes, causing pH shock to undesired organisms. The uniqueness of this process is the adjustability of the pH with one system. The same plasma system can be used to treat both the water and the biomass. Additionally, the technology can be used as an on-demand, point-of-use method for producing nitric acid.