Page 81 - International Space Station Benefits for Humanity, 3rd edition.

As represented by the examples above, proliferation CubeLabs can be “plugged into” the ISS and either
of ISS commercial facilities is ongoing, with processes run automatically until it returns to Earth or be manually
in place to aggressively target, monitor and manage controlled from the ground. For Space Tango,
lab capacity to ensure the space station maximizes microgravity is the next frontier in advancing scientific
the impact it has on economic, social and innovation discovery and expanding the universe of R&D in space.
outcomes. A number of enterprising companies have TangoLab-1 arrived on the ISS in August 2016
targeted low-Earth orbit (LEO) and the ISS as integral and is roughly a half-meter by half-meter
elements of their business plans going forward. (58 x 46-centimeter [~23 x 18-inch) platform
The ISS has opened the doors to LEO for commercial that houses up to 21 CubeLabs and provides
entities, researchers and scientists. Private industries power and communication links for experiments.
collaborate with government agencies to provide The TangoLab-2 facility was launched to the ISS
services and facilities to researchers, taking advantage in August 2017, adding a few new capabilities and
of the space station’s microgravity environment. taking the number of experiments Space Tango can
accommodate at a time from 21 to 42—dramatically
expanding the number of customers that can
Research in a Box* conduct experiments on the ISS National Lab.
*Part of this article is reprinted with permission The TangoLabs are permanent fixtures on the ISS,
from Upward Magazine (V2,3), but CubeLabs—and thus experiments—can be
New-to-space companies and investors who have swapped out so that experiments can be repeated
never explored space’s resources are using the ISS as is or modified in real time to meet the needs of
National Lab as a platform for innovation, discovery the investigator. Each 10 x 10 x 10-centimeter
and commerce. To support this growth, Kentucky- (~4 x 4 x 4-inch) CubeLab makes up a unit—known
based Space Tango is filling new demand for as a U—and can house a single experiment, whether
expanding space-based research and development it is from the life sciences, material sciences, or another
by paradoxically shrinking labs into something small field of study. Alternatively, an experiment can take up
enough to be held in both hands. 2U, 4U or even 6U, if needed. CubeLabs also contain
the necessary attachments required for experiments,
The space available for R&D on the ISS is significantly such as LED lights or imaging equipment.
more constrained than labs on Earth—access to mass,
volume, power and crew time are precious. To address
this constraint, Space Tango works with researchers
to offer the capabilities of a full lab condensed into
a 10-centimeter (4-inch) CubeLab Module.
Following in the footsteps of other companies
before them, an experiment in one of Space Tango’s

Because many researchers
do not have experience in
spaceflight R&D, Space Tango
works with customers to modify Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei swaps out a
ground-based experiments to payload card from the TangoLab-1 facility and
places it into the TangoLab-2 facility. TangoLab
meet the demands of the space provides a standardized platform and open
environment and make R&D architecture for experimental modules called
CubeLabs. Pictured here are a pair of CubeLabs
objectives technically feasible. that are 2U and 1U in size.
Image credit: NASA

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