NASA Science Facilities on the International Space Station

NASA’s Division of Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) uses the spaceflight environment to study phenomena in ways that cannot be done on Earth. BPS research is focused on two priorities: quantum science and space biology investigations that enable us to Thrive In DEep Space (TIDES).The vision for BPS, in keeping with the NASA Strategic Plan and Decadal Survey, is: We lead the space life and physical sciences research community to enable space exploration and benefit life on Earth.BPS administers NASA’s: - Space Biology Program, which solicits and conducts research to use the space environment to advance our knowledge of how gravity affects the design and function of living organisms, and to understand how biological systems accommodate to spaceflight environments. - Physical Sciences Program, which solicits and conducts research using the space environment as a tool to provide transformational insights in physics and engineering science, and to understand how physical systems respond to spaceflight environments, particularly weightlessness and the partial gravity of planetary bodies.BPS research and technology development is conducted on a wide range of experimental platforms including ground-based analogs for spaceflight, drop towers and aircraft that provide seconds of weightlessness, to free-flyer satellites. The International Space Station (ISS) is a critically important United States facility that provides researchers the ability to conduct long-duration experiments in low Earth orbit. ISS allows continuous and interactive research similar to Earth-based laboratories, enabling scientists to pursue innovations and discoveries not currently achievable by other means. BPS is also planning research and technology development to enable human spaceflight and scientific discovery beyond low Earth orbit. Current BPS Fleet For More InformationSee [https://science.nasa.gov/biological-physical](https://science.nasa.gov/biological-physical) Related pages

Timeline of Current and Future Earth Science Missions Current and Future Earth Science Missions by Science Focus Areas Recent and Upcoming Earth Science Launches Related pages

Small spacecraft and satellites help NASA advance scientific and human exploration, reduce the cost of new space missions, and expand access to space. Through technological innovation, small satellites enable entirely new architectures for a wide range of activities in space with the potential for exponential jumps in transformative science. NASA's SmallSat and CubeSat fleet as of July, 2019 The CSLI or CubeSat Launch Initiative CubeSats by the numbers Related pages

Planetary science is a grand human enterprise that seeks to understand the history of our solar system and the distribution of life within it. Planetary science missions inform us about our neighborhood and our own origin and evolution; they are necessary precursors to the expansion of humanity beyond Earth. Through five decades of planetary exploration, NASA has developed the capac­ity to explore all of the objects in our solar system. Future missions will bring back samples from some of these desti­nations, allowing iterative detailed study and analysis back on Earth. In the future, humans will return to the Moon, go to asteroids, Mars, and ultimately other solar system bodies to explore them, but only after they have been explored and understood using robotic missions. The Planetary Fleet The Planetary Fleet on or at Mars The Planetary Fleet - Asteroid and Small Body Missions Related pages Graphic summary of US robotic missions to Mars Graphic summary of all robotic missions to Mars Timeline of Venus Exploration Missions Discovery & New Frontier Missions

Heliophysics encompasses science that improves our understanding of fundamental physical processes throughout the solar system, and enables us to understand how the Sun, as the major driver of the energy throughout the solar system, impacts our technological society. The scope of heliophysics is vast, spanning from the Sun’s interior to Earth’s upper atmosphere, throughout interplanetary space, to the edges of the heliosphere, where the solar wind interacts with the local interstellar medium. Heliophysics incorporates studies of the interconnected elements in a single system that produces dynamic space weather and that evolves in response to solar, planetary, and interstellar conditions. The current Heliophysics fleet Related pages

Astrophysics is the study of phenomena occurring in the universe and of the physical principles that govern them. Astrophysics research encompasses a broad range of topics, from the birth of the universe and its evolution and composition, to the processes leading to the development of planets and stars and galaxies, to the physical conditions of matter in extreme gravitational fields, and to the search for life on planets orbiting other stars. In seeking to understand these phenomena, astrophysics science embodies some of the most enduring quests of humankind. Astrophysics Fleet Related pages

The International Space Station offers a unique vantage point for observing the Earth's ecosystems with hands-on and automated equipment. These options enable astronauts to observe and explain what they witness in real time. Station crews can observe and collect camera images of events as they unfold and may also provide input to ground personnel programming the station's automated Earth-sensing systems. This flexibility is an advantage over sensors on unmanned spacecraft, especially when unexpected natural events such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.A wide variety of Earth-observation payloads can be attached to the exposed facilities on the station's exterior; already, several instruments have been proposed by researchers from the partner countries. The station contributes to humanity by collecting data on the global climate, environmental change and natural hazards using its unique complement of crew-operated and automated Earth-observation payloads. NASA Earth Science instruments on the International Space Station. For More InformationSee [www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research](www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research) Related pages NASA Earth Science instruments on the International Space Station with dates

In order to study the Earth as a whole system and understand how it is changing, NASA develops and supports a large number of Earth observing missions. These missions provide Earth science researchers the necessary data to address key questions about global climate change. Missions begin with a study phase during which the key science objectives of the mission are identified, and designs for spacecraft and instruments are analyzed. Following a successful study phase, missions enter a development phase whereby all aspects of the mission are developed and tested to insure it meets the mission objectives. Operating missions are those missions that are currently active and providing science data to researchers. Operating missions may be in their primary operational phase or in an extended operational phase.Missions begin with a study phase during which the key science objectives of the mission are identified, and designs for spacecraft and instruments are analyzed. Following a successful study phase, missions enter a development phase whereby all aspects of the mission are developed and tested to insure it meets the mission objectives. Current Earth Fleet Chart, "swoosh" format Full set of current Earth fleet charts: full fleet full fleet with dates current NASA missions international collaborations For More InformationSee [science.nasa.gov/earth-science/](science.nasa.gov/earth-science/) Related pages Earth Fleet missions studying tropical cyclones Earth Fleet missions studying sea surface height