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eating staph infections can be tricky in the best of times. But what happens if you get infected while in space?

Thats the scenario Kelly Rice, associate professor at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, hopes to help understand. Rices experiment will be launched today, Jan. 30, to the International Space Station on a SpaceX rocket.

Staph, orStaphylococcus aureus, is a type of bacteria found in the nose or on the skin of up to 30% of humans, but under certain conditions, it can thwart a human bodys physical and immune defenses and cause severe infection. Staph infections can be particularly troublesome for people in close quarters, such as astronauts.

A previous study done by Rice and her colleagues found that the bacteria had the potential to be more dangerous to astronauts while in microgravity.

The current experiment will include growing the bacteria in enclosed canisters to better understand how microgravity affects expression of disease-spreading properties, how the bacteria grows and other factors.

We are grateful to NASA for the opportunity to study this bacteria, and the information gained may apply to other bacteria as well, Rice said. We hope that these results will help guide strategies to maintain astronaut health during long-term space flight missions.

This study was funded by a grant from the NASA Biological Sciences Divisions Space Biology Program.

Meredith Bauer January 30, 2024

Link:

SpaceX launches UF/IFAS microbiology experiment to ISS - University of Florida

SpaceXs Starship rocket has been selected to launch Starlab, the commercial space station venture between Voyager Space and Airbus.

Standing nearly 400 feet tall, Starship is the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, with two reusable components, the Super Heavy Booster and Starship spacecraft.

Its what will be needed to launch the commercial space station in a single mission, according to a Starlab official.

SpaceXs history of success and reliability led our team to select Starship to orbit Starlab, Dylan Taylor, chairman and CEO of Voyager Space, said in a statement. SpaceX is the unmatched leader for high-cadence launches, and we are proud Starlab will be launched to orbit in a single flight by Starship.

Starlab, which will permanently host four crewmembers, is scheduled to launch prior to the International Space Stations (ISS) decommissioning before the end of the decade, heralding the U.S. transitioning to commercially owned and operated low-Earth orbit (LEO) destinations.

As a continuously crewed, free-flying space station, Starlab will serve a global customer base of space agencies, researchers, and companies, ensuring a continued human presence in LEO and a seamless transition of microgravity research from the [ISS] into the new commercial space station era, Voyager Space said.

NASA has committed to utilizing and operating ISS through 2030.

Starlabs single-launch solution continues to demonstrate not only what is possible but how the future of commercial space is happening now, said Tom Ochinero, senior vice president of commercial business at SpaceX.

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SpaceX's Starship Selected to Launch Starlab Space Station - FLYING

SpaceX is preparing to launch a Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft on its flagship Falcon 9 rocket for the first time next week.

The launch of the NG-20 resupply mission is targeted for no earlier than Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 12:07 p.m. EST (1707 GMT). As its name implies, this is the twentieth cargo flight that Northrop Grumman has sent to the International Space Station (ISS), but the first time that the company's Cygnus cargo craft has been sent to the orbital lab atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

During a pre-flight teleconference on Friday (Jan. 26), William Gerstenmaier, vice president of Build and Flight Reliability at SpaceX, said that the Falcon 9's payload fairing, the shell that surrounds and protects a spacecraft during ascent while atop a rocket, had to be modified to add a hatch measuring 5 feet by 4 feet (1.5m by 1.2m). The hatch gives ground crews the ability to add extra "late-load" cargo before launch including special treats like ice cream for the astronauts aboard the space station, Gerstenmaier said.

Gerstenmaier added that the complication of addition of the hatch contributed to the decision to delay the launch one day to Jan. 30. That's because the area inside that hatch must be environmentally controlled, since any contamination on Cygnus's docking hardware could affect how well it berths at the ISS.

"So that's a pretty intense activity," Gerstenmaier said. "This will be the first time we've done that. It's taken a lot of modifications on our part to get this hardware ready to go fly."

Related: A robot surgeon is headed to the ISS to dissect simulated astronaut tissue

Aboard the latest Cygnus freighter will be fresh foods and supplies for the astronauts currently aboard the space station and a slew of sophisticated science experiments, including the first robotic surgeon to make it up to the ISS.

Cyrus Dhalla, vice president and general manager of tactical space systems at Northrop Grumman, explained that Cygnus will stay docked at the International Space Station for roughly six months, during which it might be called upon to boost the space station back up to its optimal altitude. That's because the station slowly falls towards Earth over time due to atmospheric drag.

When it's time at the ISS is complete, Cygnus will depart carrying trash and other waste to be disposed of in a fiery reentry in Earth's atmosphere, which is "another really important function of the platform," Dhalla added.

Previous Cygnus cargo missions flew atop Northrop Grumman's Antares rocket, but the current version of that vehicle is being phased out due to Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Supply chains for Antares, which relied on Ukrainian-built first stages and Russian rocket engines, have been disrupted by the invasion. Antares 230 made its last flight in August 2023.

Read more here:

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket modified for Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo launch on Jan. 30 - Space.com

Northrop Grummans Cygnus spacecraft, loaded with more than 8,200 pounds of supplies, launched to the ISS on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, marking the 20th resupply mission by Northrop Grumman for NASA. Credit: SpaceX

A fresh supply of more than 8,200 pounds of scientific investigations and cargo is on its way to the International Space Station on a Northrop Grumman Cygnus resupply spacecraft after launching on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 12:07 p.m. EST Tuesday from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

About 15 minutes after launch, Cygnus reached its preliminary orbit. About two hours after launch, the spacecraft successfully deployed its two solar arrays.

A successful liftoff from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida as Northrop Grummans Cygnus spacecraft, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, heads to the International Space Station for the 20th Northrop Grumman resupply mission on Tuesday, January 30, 2024. The spacecraft is expected to reach the space station on Thursday, February 1, 2024, bringing 8,200 pounds of science investigations, supplies, and equipment for the international crew. Credit: Kim Shiflett

Cygnus is scheduled to arrive at the space station around 4:15 a.m. Thursday, February 1.

NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, and agencys website will provide live coverage of the spacecrafts approach and arrival beginning at 2:45 a.m.

NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli will capture Cygnus using the stations Canadarm2 robotic arm, and NASA astronaut Loral OHara will be acting as a backup. After capture, the spacecraft will be installed on the Unity modules Earth-facing port.

This is Northrop Grummans 20th contracted resupply mission for NASA.

Northrop Grummans Cygnus spacecraft, atop a SpaceX 9 Falcon rocket, soars from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Tuesday, January 30, 2024, for the 20th Northrop Grumman commercial resupply mission for NASA. The spacecraft will bring 8,200 pounds of science investigations, supplies, and equipment to the International Space Station including tests of a 3D metal printer, semiconductor manufacturing, and thermal protection systems. The Cygnus spacecraft is expected to reach the space station on Thursday, February 1, 2024, where it will remain until its expected departure in May. Credit: SpaceX

Northrop Grummans Cygnus spacecraft is an unmanned cargo spacecraft designed to transport supplies, equipment, and scientific experiments to the International Space Station (ISS). Developed as part of NASAs Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, Cygnus plays a crucial role in maintaining the ISSs operations and advancing space research.

The spacecraft consists of two primary components: the Service Module, which contains the spacecrafts avionics, propulsion, and power systems, and the Pressurized Cargo Module, where the cargo is stored. Once Cygnus completes its mission and is unberthed from the ISS, it safely burns up upon re-entering the Earths atmosphere. This design makes Cygnus an efficient means of not only delivering supplies but also disposing of the stations waste.

Over the years, Cygnus has been instrumental in numerous resupply missions, contributing significantly to the ongoing success and sustainability of the ISS and its missions.

Read more:

Cygnus Soars on SpaceX Rocket to Resupply International Space Station - SciTechDaily

CAPE CANAVERAL SPACE FORCE SpaceX has successfully sent up Northrop Grummans Cygnus spacecraft, as it will carry more than 8,000 pounds of experiments and supplies to the International Space Station on Tuesday afternoon.

As the instantaneous launch window opened at 12:07 p.m. ET, the companys Falcon 9 rocket left from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, stated SpaceX.

If it did not go up, there was a backup launch attempt schedule for Thursday, Feb. 1, at 11:18 a.m. ET.

The first-stage booster landed at Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station after causing a cracking sonic boom that was heard for miles around.

NASA stated that the uncrewed Cygnus spacecraft that is being used in Northrop Grummans 20th Commercial Resupply Services (NG-20 mission) will be caught by the ISSs robotic arm at around 2:45 a.m. ET, on Thursday.

After capture, the spacecraft will be installed on the (the ISSs) Unity modules Earth-facing port, stated NASA.

The Cygnus spacecraft will stand on the module for about six months until it is released in May, where it will burn up in Earths atmosphere, the space agency noted.

The Falcon 9 first-stage booster that will be used for this mission is called B1077 and it already has nine successful missions to its name.

This will be Northrop Grummans 20th commercial resupply services mission to the ISS, but it will be the first time it will be riding on top of SpaceXs Falcon 9 rocket, stated NASA.

The multinational aerospace and defense technology company, based in Virginia, will be using its Cygnus cargo spacecraft, or freighter, for the mission.

Using the Cygnus in the past, Northrop Grumman has delivered more than 130,000 pounds of cargo total to the ISS.

Cygnus consists of a Service Module and a Pressurized Cargo Module that carries crew supplies, equipment and scientific experiments to destinations in low-Earth orbit, stated the company, adding that the spacecraft has met NASAs safety requirements.

The Cygnus spacecraft has been christened S.S. Patricia Patty Hilliard Robertson in honor of the late NASA astronaut, both Northrop Grumman and NASA stated. Robertson was supposed to fly to the ISS in 2002, but she died the year before in a private plane crash.

For the NG-20 mission, more than 8,200 pounds of supplies will be sent to the ISS. This includes science experiments, crew supplies and lab hardware for the famed floating laboratory.

Some of the highlighted experiments from both NASA and national and international partners and universities that will be sent up are:

Metal 3D printer: Among other things, it will 3D print small metal parts in microgravity.

Results could improve understanding of the functionality, performance, and operations of metal 3D printing in space, as well as the quality, strength, and characteristics of the printed parts, NASA described.

Modeling Atmospheric Re-entry: In an effort to protect experiments returning to Earth from the ISS and surviving the extreme heat of re-entry, this experiment will use three different heat shield materials and use different sensors to get data on the actual conditions of returning to Earth.

Remote Robotic Surgery: This small robot will be controlled remotely from NASA to perform surgical procedures. Before operating on a real person, with its two hands, it will hold on to and cut simulated tissue, among other things.

Researchers plan to compare procedures in microgravity and on Earth to evaluate the effects of microgravity and time delays between space and ground, NASA explained.

Growing Cartilage Tissue in Space: Janus Base Nano-Matrix (JBNm) and Janus Base Nanopiece (JBNp). JBNm is an injectable material that provides a scaffold for the formation of cartilage in microgravity, which can serve as a model for studying cartilage diseases. JBNp delivers an RNA-based therapy to combat diseases that cause cartilage degeneration, NASA explained.

Because microgravity can trigger cartilage degeneration, the research in microgravity could lead to faster treatments that can be both used in future missions to the moon and Mars but also here on Earth, NASA explained.

Get more details about the experiments here.

Excerpt from:

SpaceX launches Northrop Grumman resupply mission to ISS - News 13 Orlando