Above: Space is gearing up to test the performance and durability of its proprietary materials in low orbit aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the upcoming Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE-19) mission.

Scheduled for March, this mission will be flown by the SpaceX Dragon resupply mission, SPX-30.

The MISSE facility’s environmental monitoring and data collection systems will host small samples of materials attached to panels on the exterior of the ISS. These samples will undergo rigorous testing to assess durability factors in the harsh space environment, enduring extreme levels of solar and charged-particle radiation, atomic oxygen, hard vacuum, temperature extremes, and contamination. Subsequently, the samples will be returned to Earth for detailed analysis.

Among the materials being tested are those potentially utilized on Orbital’s Archimedes Orbital System, a rapidly deployable, free-flying on-orbit platform currently in development.

Archimedes aims to function as an orbital system for solar panels, beamed power, electronically steerable antenna arrays for communications and monitoring, and other space infrastructure purposes. Additionally, materials such as resins, polymers, and various customer payloads, including in situ 3-D printing, data, and seeds, will undergo testing.

“Testing materials before building is crucial to successful outcomes as we work toward our goals in low Earth orbit,” said ABOVE CEO and President Rhonda Stevenson. “We’re excited for our first launch and are pleased to be flying customer payloads together with our experiments in the mission.”

Since 2001, the MISSE series has conducted tests on approximately 4,000 material samples and specimens, ranging from lubricants and paints to fabrics, container seals, and solar cell technologies. These tests aim to demonstrate the durability of materials in the challenging space environment.