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Materials Research & Development

This commercial research works to improve existing materials while developing the materials of tomorrow. Research on Aerogel — a material that is mostly air — may turn this "frozen smoke" into a clear knockout that could be used to make windows with the insulating properties of up to 30 panes of conventional glass, as well as open up a world of new products. U.S. industries such as Ford Motor Company, ALCOA, and Howmet Corporation are using commercial space research to improve the casting process, helping improve cast automotive and aerospace components.

Commercial Space Centers involved with Materials Research & Development include the Center for Advanced Microgravity Materials Processing (CAMMP), the Center for Commercial Applications of Combustion in Space (CCACS), the Consortium for Materials Development in Space (CMDS), the Solidification Design Center (SDC), and the Space Vacuum Epitaxy Center (SVEC). To learn more about some of the successful commercial research being done in this area, click here.

Biotechnology Research

The manipulation of organic materials — cells, tissues, and even living organisms — offers many exciting possibilities for the future, from organic computers to improved aquaculture. Commercial researchers are using the microgravity environment to produce large, near perfect protein crystals, and research on insulin — used to treat diabetes, the fourth leading cause of death by disease— has yielded crystals that far surpass the quality of insulin crystals grown on the ground. Using these crystals, industry partners are working to develop new and improved treatments for diabetes.

Commercial Space Centers involved with Biotechnology Research include BioServe, the Center for Macromolecular Crystallography, and the Consortium for Materials Development in Space (CMDS). To learn more about some of the successful commercial research being done in this area, click here.

Agribusiness

The altered growth of plants in microgravity presents many exciting opportunities to commercial researchers. Investigations are underway to determine if those changes can be harnessed to enhance the production of anti-cancer compounds in certain plants. Research is also being done to see if it is possible to produce crop plants that will form nodules that can extract nitrogen from the air and soil — just as bean and other legume plants do — so that they will need less fertilizer. This could not only improve crop yields, but also help eliminate excess nitrogen compounds in the water running off from fields, which is a leading cause of water pollution. It may even be possible to improve the development of new varieties of plants in space, as doing such work in microgravity may improve the Earth-based success rate of 1 in a 1000 (0.1%) of getting a desired trait passed along to future plant generations.

Commercial Space Centers involved with Agribusiness Research include the Wisconsin Center for Space Automation and Robotics (WCSAR) and BioServe. To learn more about some of the successful commercial research being done in this area, click here.