Microgravity effect on murine T cells exposed to suborbital flight aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard vehicle

Numerous scientific experiments have been conducted in space. However, the precise mechanisms mediating successful human body adaption to the hostile space environment are still not delineated. The cost and logistic challenges of sending biological payloads to International Space Station are forcing scientists to find alternative research platforms. In this study, we investigated whether brief exposure to microgravity during the suborbital flight aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket modulated the behavior of the gravity-sensitive murine T cells. We assessed the effect of suborbital environment on different T cell subsets, activation markers, functionality, and cytokine secretion capabilities. Thus, to optimize the potential response of T cells, we cultured them in interleukin IL-2 alone or combined with IL-12. We found that exposure to microgravity decreased the expression of T cells with CD4+ cells being more sensitive to suborbital flight as compared to CD8+ cells. Our data indicate that the functional capabilities of flown T cells were reduced. Also, our findings suggest that supplementing cells with IL-2 and IL-12 cytokines may restore microgravity-mediated cellular alterations. Finally, our study provides insights on the microgravity effect on the murine T cells by utilizing a novel suborbital research platform.

Design Optimization of Interfacing Attachments for the Deployable Wing of an Unmanned Re-Entry Vehicle

Re-entry winged body vehicles have several advantages w.r.t capsules, such as maneuverability and controlled landing opportunity. On the other hand, they show an increment in design level complexity, especially from an aerodynamic, aero-thermodynamic, and structural point of view, and in the difficulties of housing in operative existing launchers. In this framework, the idea of designing unmanned vehicles equipped with deployable wings for suborbital flight was born. This work details a preliminary study for identifying the best configuration for the hinge system aimed at the in-orbit deployment of an unmanned re-entry vehicle’s wings. In particular, the adopted optimization methodology is described. The adopted approach uses a genetic algorithm available in commercial software in conjunction with fully parametric models created in FEM environments and, in particular, it can optimize the hinge position considering both the deployed and folded configuration. The results identify the best hinge configuration that minimizes interface loads, thus, realizing a lighter and more efficient deployment system. Indeed, for such a category of vehicle, it is mandatory to reduce the structural mass, as much as possible in order to increase the payload and reduce service costs.

A Rapid Fabrication Methodology for Payload Modules, Piloted for the Observation of Queen Honey Bees (Apis mellifera) in Microgravity

Microgravity experiment modules for living organisms have been instrumental to space research, yet their design remains complex and costly. As the private space sector enables more widely available payloads for researchers, it is increasingly necessary to design experimental modules innovatively so that they are proportionately accessible. To ease this bottleneck, we developed a rapid fabrication methodology for producing custom modules compatible with commercial payload slots. Our method creates a unified housing geometry, based on a given component layout, which is fabricated in a digital design and subtractive manufacturing process from a single lightweight foam material. This module design demonstrated a 25–50% reduction in chassis weight compared with existing models, and is extremely competitive in manufacturing time, simplicity, and cost. To demonstrate the ability to capture data on previously limited areas of space biology, we apply this methodology to create an autonomous, video-enabled module for sensing and observing queen and retinue bees aboard the Blue Origin New Shepard 11 (NS-11) suborbital flight. To explore whether spaceflight impacts queen fitness, results used high-definition visual data enabled by the module's compact build to analyze queen-worker regulation under microgravity stress (n = 2, with controls). Overall, this generalizable method for constructing experimental modules provides wider accessibility to space research and new data on honey bee behavior in microgravity.

APL JANUS System Progress on Commercial Suborbital Launch Vehicles: Moving the Laboratory Environment to Near Space

Multiple private companies are building suborbital reusable launch vehicles possessing vastly different designs. Many of these companies originally focused on space tourism; however, revolutionary applications for scientific and engineering research as well as technology demonstrations and instrument development are emerging. The dramatic reduction in cost over traditional launch systems as well as a guaranteed (and rapid) safe payload return enable many new launch vehicle applications. These new capabilities will essentially move the laboratory environment up to the edge of space. To make use of these novel launch vehicles, the John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory has established a Commercial Suborbital Program with a core system (JANUS) to support and enable many future suborbital missions. This program has already conducted six suborbital flight missions to establish vehicle interfaces and analyze the suitability and limits of each flight environment. Additionally, this program has also been selected by the NASA Flight Opportunities Program for five additional operational suborbital missions. Here we present the results of our completed missions as well as descriptions of future selected missions scheduled for 2021–2023.

Shared Metabolic Remodeling Processes Characterize the Transcriptome of Arabidopsis thaliana within Various Suborbital Flight Environments

The increasing availability of flights on suborbital rockets creates new avenues for the study of spaceflight effects on biological systems, particularly of the transitions between hypergravity and microgravity. This paper presents an initial comparison of the responses of Arabidopsis thaliana to suborbital and atmospheric parabolic flights as an important step toward characterizing these emerging suborbital platforms and their effects on biology. Transcriptomic profiling of the response of the Arabidopsis ecotype Wassilewskija (WS) to the aggregate suborbital spaceflight experiences in Blue Origin New Shepard and Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo revealed that the transcriptomic load induced by flight differed between the two flights, yet was biologically related to traditional parabolic flight responses. The sku5 skewing mutant and 14-3-3κ:GFP regulatory protein overexpression lines, flown in the Blue Origin and parabolic flights, respectively, each showed altered intra-platform responses compared to WS. An additional parabolic flight using the F-104 Starfighter showed that the response of 14-3-3κ:GFP to flight was modulated in a similar manner to the WS line. Despite the differing genotypes, experimental workflows, flight profiles, and platforms, differential gene expression linked to remodeling of central metabolic processes was commonly observed in the flight responses. However, the timing and directionality of differentially expressed genes involved in the conserved processes differed among the platforms. The processes included carbon and nitrogen metabolism, branched-chain amino acid degradation, and hypoxic responses. The data presented herein highlight the potential for various suborbital platforms to contribute insights into biological responses to spaceflight, and further suggest that in-flight fixation during suborbital experiments will enhance insights into responses during each phase of flight.

Calculation of minimum supply of fuel in contact with the innertank device to ensure the operation of a liquid-propellant rocket engine in zero gravity

The paper introduces the results of theoretical studies of the process of liquid fuel deposition in liquid-propellant rocket engine tanks under conditions of free (undisturbed) orbital (suborbital) flight under the influence of a small pre-launch overload created by auxiliary engines before the liquid-propellant sustainer starting. In this work, we estimated the relaxation time of the free volume of liquid for the most unfavorable case, and the minimum supply of the covolume for the guaranteed starting and uninterrupted operation of the liquid-propellant rocket engine in zero gravity. Furthermore, we investigated the possibility of controlling the relaxation time with a gradual or stepwise starting operation. The proposed formula makes it possible at the design stage to assess the minimum supply of fuel, which can be in contact with the innertank device before starting the liquid-propellant sustainer in zero gravity in order to ensure the uninterrupted operation of the propulsion system.

Analysis of Vibratory Data Collected by the Space Acceleration Measurement System (SAMS) on Blue Origin, June 19, 2016

On Sunday, June 19, 2016, a Space Acceleration Measurement System triaxial sensor head flew on a suborbital flight aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard vehicle to collect precision vibratory accelerometry data. The Space Acceleration Measurement System (SAMS) sensor head was mounted inside of a Blue Origin single payload locker inside of the crew capsule. This paper describes the configuration, capture, and analysis of the SAMS data from this flight along with other, related flight log information provided by Blue Origin. Three overlapping periods during the flight were identified and characterized to provide future users of the platform with insight into options that may prove suitable for their research needs. Average accelerations in the Post-Separation Period were consistent with other low-g research platforms, while the shorter Microgravity Period in the middle of the flight showed ultra-quiet vibratory acceleration environments. Researchers can consider this microgravity quality versus time a tradeoff in their experimental designs.