The Combustion Integrated Rack, or CIR (pronounced sir),
in the Destiny laboratory makes it possible
to perform a wide variety of experiments
that teach us how fire behaves in microgravity.
In the center of the CIR is a large,
round chamber called the Multi-User Droplet
Combustion Apparatus.
This 100-liter chamber has eight windows and five cameras
that allow scientists to observe patterns made from burning fuels
under different conditions.
The five cameras are capable of photographing high resolution,
high frame rate images in Ultra-Violet low light,
and in multiple spectrums
that are specific to combustion events.
Several additional hardware components can be added
to the CIR to customize its chamber
for specific experiments.
FLEX is the Flame Extinguishment Experiment that utilizes the CIR
to conduct various burn tests on gas and liquid fuel.
It also tests the effectiveness of different methods
for extinguishing the flames from the test.
ISS provides a sustained microgravity environment,
which allows scientists to observe the geometric, chemical,
and thermodynamic properties of both the flame
and the fuel droplet inside the burn chamber.
Under these conditions,
we can advance our fundamental understanding of how fuels burn
in microgravity, as well as on Earth.
This research will be used
to better address fire hazards associated
with liquid combustibles.
The wealth of information obtained from the tests
in FLEX will also help scientists
on Earth solve problems with pollution
that is generated by combustion.
The many different experiments
in the Combustion Integrated Rack will help engineers
increase the efficiency of gasoline and diesel engines here
on Earth, and will also help us understand fire prevention
and suppression.
The Human Research Facility racks
in the Columbus laboratory allow ISS crewmembers to study one
of Earth's most advanced organisms: the human body.
Astronauts conduct medical exams, track changes in health
and behavior, and research countermeasures
to reduce the harmful effects spaceflight has on humans.
Our bodies are well suited to work under the force
of Earth's gravity, but long duration spaceflight results
in muscle atrophy, bone deterioration,
cardiovascular deconditioning, and a weakened immune system.
In an effort to understand these changes
and how they affect astronaut health, the HRF is used
to conduct several types of physiology experiments.
For example, the CARD
and Integrated Cardiovascular are two investigations
to better understand how the heart functions in microgravity.
Without the force of gravity for the heart to pump against,
the heart muscle weakens in space.
Scientists want to understand what this might mean
for astronauts on orbit as they increase their time spent
in space, and also how this will also affect their return
to Earth's gravity.
The Space Linear Acceleration Mass Measurement Device,
called "SLAMM-Dee," is an advanced scale
that measures body mass without the pull of gravity.
It does this by applying Newton's Second Law of Motion,
which states that mass equals force divided by acceleration.
By tracking changes in astronauts' body mass over time,
scientists can better understand their nutritional status
while on-orbit.
The Nutrition Status Assessment focuses on the effects diet has
on bone health, chemical and hormone changes,
and oxidative damage in space.
Urine and blood samples are collected before, during,
and after space flight for biochemical analysis
to determine the effectiveness of both nutrition
and pharmaceuticals that are being tested
for maintaining astronaut health on the space station.
Nutrition research is necessary for establishing proper food
and vitamin diets for long-duration space missions
as we explore destinations beyond the low earth orbit.
Although the intended goal of the HRF's research is
to understand how the human body reacts
to long duration spaceflight, the added benefit from much
of this research is that it helps us
to better understand heart disease, muscle degeneration
and osteoporosis; ailments suffered by millions
of people on Earth today.
The Microgravity Science Glovebox,
located in the Destiny Laboratory,
provides 9 cubic feet of enclosed workspace
for conducting a wide variety of experiments
that require liquids, combustion,
or hazardous materials.
ISS crewmembers can safely use its rugged gloves to work
in a sealed environment without the risk
of releasing any small parts, particles, fluids or gasses
into the rest of the laboratory.
The Structure and Liftoff in Combustion Experiment, or SLICE,
utilizes the MSG to study and work with fire in microgravity.
SLICE allows astronauts to photograph and measure the shape
and temperature of flames produced by various fuels
and sizes of burner nozzles.
These assorted flame shapes and sizes are then modeled
to help scientists develop more efficient engines
and furnaces here on Earth.
The MSG is also used to conduct the BASS experiment,
which stands for Burning and Suppression of Solids.
Instead of measuring flames from burner nozzles,
the BASS experiment observes and models the geometry of flames
on solid spheres and flat surfaces.
These controlled fires are then extinguished in a variety
of ways to look for the best strategy to use
for suppressing flames in microgravity.
Improved fire detection and suppression systems for use
on Earth and the ISS can then be designed from this information.
The MSG is also used to accommodate tests
for heating liquids in the Boiling Experiment Facility,
a small container that includes two types of heating arrays,
high-speed video cameras, and a variety
of tools for measurement.
Experiments in the BXF try to determine "Critical Heat Flux" -
the point at which a heat source becomes so hot
that the liquid can't actually touch it.
Interestingly enough, the information from the study
of Critical Heat Flux is used to design enhanced cooling systems.
The BXF's heating arrays are also used to study the shape
and buoyancy of bubbles.
The high-speed cameras in the BXF capture the growth,
detachment, and motion of two types of vapor bubbles:
small individual bubbles, and larger bubbles
that have merged together.
Without the Microgravity Science Glovebox aboard the ISS,
there wouldn't be a safe way to work with dangerous materials
and conditions to carry out these compelling experiments.
The most common rack design used
on board the ISS is a multipurpose payload rack called
ExPRESS, which stands for Expedite the Processing
of Experiments to Space Station.
There are eight modular ExPRESS racks spread throughout the
station's three laboratories.
Each rack provides important resources such as power,
cooling, water, and data connections to support
up to ten individual experiments.
The versatility of the ExPRESS racks makes them ideal
for conducting physical, chemical,
and biological experiments in microgravity.
The Binary Colloidal Alloy Test, or BCAT, researches how liquids
and gasses separate - or alternately, come together.
Astronauts also study the patterns that emerge
when solids are suspended in liquids.
What scientists learn from BCAT observations may be used
to create better stabilizers that extend the shelf life
of food, products, and medicines here on Earth.
Biological science is also researched in the ExPRESS racks.
The Advanced Biological Research System has two growth chambers,
each with independent controls for temperature, light,
and atmospheric conditions.
The chambers are used to grow various organisms like plants,
small insects, and microorganisms.
The Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus,
or CGBA, enables automated processing
for the microscopic study of protein crystal growth,
bacteria, and cell cultures.
The CGBA also houses insect habitats
and plant development modules.
These two examples of biological research systems will help
scientists gain a better understanding
of how organisms develop and respond in various conditions.
Many of the experiments that take place
on the International Space Station require either the use
of, or actually produce, biological samples.
In order to preserve these samples for their use
in various tests, or their eventual return to Earth,
scientists in the European Space Agency developed a specialized
freezer rack called MELFI,
or the Minus Eighty-degree Laboratory Freezer for ISS.
Unlike most of the other research racks aboard the ISS,
the MELFI racks are not actually used
to conduct specific experiments;
they instead store assorted samples at 39
and minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit.
Each MELFI rack is made
up of four independently controlled chambers called
"dewars" that are cooled by nitrogen gas.
Each dewar contains four trays that can hold up to 175 liters,
or 85 kilograms of plants, cell cultures,
or human tissue and fluid samples.
The plant specimens from the Advanced Biological Research
System growth module are stored in one
of the station's three MELFI racks.
Because one of the primary areas of study
on the ISS is human physiology, MELFI stores human samples
like blood, saliva, hair, and urine.
Properly preserved blood and urine are necessary
for accurately conducting nutritional studies
and cardiovascular system experiments.
Hair samples used in the study of microgravity's effect
on metabolism and gene expression require the MELFI's
continuously monitored low temperature
for accurate results.
Thanks to the MELFI racks in the Kibo and Destiny laboratories,
astronauts aboard the ISS can conduct and preserve the results
of these valuable experiments.