First Blue Origin Commercial Payload Customers
On Dec. 12, 2017, New Shepard
flew again for the seventh time. Known as Mission 7 (M7), the flight
featured our next-generation booster and the first flight of Crew
Capsule 2.0. While our primary objective was to progress testing this
new system for human spaceflight, we also achieved an exciting milestone
with suborbital research in space by sending 12 commercial, research
and education payloads under full FAA license for the first time.
Payloads flying on New Shepard are doing important science and
research onboard the 11-minute flight to space and back. During this
flight, our customers get approximately three minutes in a high-quality
microgravity environment, at an apogee around 100 kilometers, making New Shepard ideal for microgravity physics, gravitational biology, technology demonstrations, and educational programs.
The combination of high altitude and low-gravity exposure provides an
environment for a wide range of payloads ranging from basic and applied
microgravity sciences to Earth and space science. Each of these domains
has the opportunity to engage users ranging from universities to
corporations. The rapid timelines and low costs of flight are also
increasingly attracting educators and students of all ages.
Below are a few highlights of investigations that were a part of the New Shepard M7 flight:
Zero-Gravity Glow Experiment (ZGGE)
Purdue University & Cumberland Elementary School (West Lafayette, Indiana) in partnership with Arete STEM
The Zero-Gravity Glow Experiment, or ZGGE for short, was inspired by a
second grade classroom’s question: “Can fireflies light up in space?”
The payload operates by mixing the appropriate chemicals during the
weightless coast period of the vehicle’s mission and observing the
response with a miniature video camera.
DCS Montessori Middle School (Castle Pines, Colorado)
In Partnership with DreamUp
This payload was a collaboration across nearly 500 K-8 students and
consisted of two parts. The first included an Arduino Nano
microcontroller with a sensor package, designed and programed by the
students to learn more about the environment inside the Crew Capsule.
The second part contained a school-wide art project that all DCS
Montessori students participated in. Upon landing, the data from the
experiment will be analyzed and the art will be returned to the students
and shared with the community.
Cell Research Experiment in Microgravity (CRExIM)
Embry-Riddle University-Daytona Beach, University of Texas Health
Science Center at San Antonio & Medical University of South Carolina
(Daytona Beach, Florida) in partnership with Arete STEM
The CRExIM (Cell Research Experiment In Microgravity) NanoLab was a
multidisciplinary effort between students and faculty in Embry-Riddle’s
Spaceflight Operations degree program and Aerospace and Mechanical
Engineering departments, who partnered with other teams from the
University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and the Medical
University of South Carolina. The experiment studied how microgravity
impacts the cellular processes of T-cells, which develop from stem cells
in the bone marrow and are key to immune system function.
Expression of Genes in Tumor Growth
Embry-Riddle University-Daytona Beach, Grand Canyon University &
Thermo Fisher Scientific (Daytona Beach, Florida) in partnership with
Arete STEM
This payload focused on studying the effect of microgravity exposure
on the expression of genes that play a role in tumor growth. Two
modified flasks were seeded with osteosarcoma cells. Syringes containing
RNAlater for cell fixation were attached to each flask and their
contents were deployed just before the onset of microgravity (in the
case of the experimental control flask) and just after its completion
(in the case of the experimental test flask). Now that the mission is
complete, the samples will be analyzed via reverse
transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to determine how the
expression of the genes has changed.
JANUS Research Platform
Johns Hopkins University-Applied Physics Laboratory (Baltimore, Maryland)
The JANUS integration and monitoring platform, about the size of a
car battery, provides researchers with a look at suborbital flight
conditions. While this flight deployed JANUS in the shirtsleeve
environment of the New Shepard cabin, future iterations will also look at the environment outside the vehicle.
Evolved Medical Microgravity Suction Device
Orbital Medicine (Richmond, Virginia) with Purdue University (West
Lafayette, Indiana), with funding from NASA’s Flight Opportunities
Program
The Evolved Medical Microgravity Suction Device could assist in
treatment of a collapsed lung where air and blood enter the pleural
cavity. The payload – which included the device along with a hemothorax
simulator – was constructed in collaboration with the Purdue University
School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. The device is able to collect
blood in microgravity, and still allows for the suction to continuously
inflate the lung and allow it to heal. The payload marked Blue Origin’s
first flight under NASA’s Flight Opportunities program
Our frequent flight schedule will allow you to launch your
experiment multiple times to iterate on findings, improve statistics, or
rapidly collect data. As human flights begin, you’ll also be able to
fly with your payloads for hands-on experimentation.
To learn more and fly your payload with us, please visit: https://www.blueorigin.com/payloads
Gradatim Ferociter!
