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JAXA participates in "ISS R&D Conference 2019"

The International Space Station (ISS) Research and Development Conference 2019 was held on July 29 to August 1, 2019 in the United States. This Conference is one of the big events where space agencies and private companies from major countries present various activities on the ISS. JAXA also has participated in this event every year.

ISS R&D Conference 2019 Overview

ISS R&D Conference 2019 (Credit: JAXA)

Major panels of the Main Sessions

Industrial Biomedicine (drug development and regeneration medicine)

• Speakers with various professionals (astronauts, NIH and researchers) presented achievements from life science experiments (including a study of mice on orbit) and the significant values of research in regeneration medicine from different viewpoints and in different aspects.
• Especially US researchers have been accelerating regenerative medical research, as shown by the launch of organoid derived from iPS cells. As for research activities using mice, several US speakers presented overviews of experiments and actual experiment results in the background of intensified expectations for the research. These exactly are initial achievements of experiments in space.
• The speech of Mr. James Frederick "Jim" Bridenstine, NASA Administrator, mentioned the International Space Station's contribution to development of muscular dystrophy drugs as an example of benefit for the ground.

Advanced materials (material science, advanced material research and on-orbit manufacturing)

• Speakers discussed material research as one of the main fields on which utilization of the ISS should focus and stated that industries have great interest in this research.
• Some US researchers are currently committed to on-orbit product manufacturing technologies ("in-space manufacturing") and reuse technologies in anticipation of deep space exploration in future. They have conducted various experiments involving 3-D printing.

Commercialization of LEO (economic growth by Public Private Partnership and assistance for start-ups)

• Dr. Koichi Wakata, Vice-president of JAXA, as a member of a panel focusing on the role and importance of public and private partnership (PPP) for sustainable economic growth and development, presented an example of public/private cooperation for utilizing the Japanese Experiment Module "Kibo" and the activities of JAXA Space Innovation through Partnership and Co-creation (J-SPARC). He especially talked about JAXA's activities for promoting fee-based utilization of "Kibo" from the early stages.
• In a session about promotion of private companies' entry into space activities, a speaker presented a support program for start-ups inaugurated by a collaboration of MassChallenge (NPO), Boeing and National Laboratories and an experiment conducted under this program.

A talk session by Mr. Jim Bridenstine (NASA Administrator) (Credti: JAXA)

Dr. Koichi Wakata (Vice President of JAXA), second from right (Credti: JAXA)

Technical Session

Activities by JAXA

In the technical sessions of the Conference, a total of nine presentations were made about "Kibo" utilization and JAXA's activities: seven by JAXA, one by a research investigator and one by a technical verification company. Many of the audience expressed their serious interest in the achievements of the "Kibo" utilization and the perspective on future activities.

• Kibo utilization strategy
• Results of partial-G experiments (using mice) and the perspective on future
• Expansion of activities using Kibo external platform into the private sector
• Technical demonstration using Kibo's robotic arm (Loop Heat Pipe)
• Joint educational programs organized with countries in Asia-Pacific region on Kibo
• Technical demonstration of Kibo robotic technologies
• Measurement of physical properties of high-temperature heat using Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF)
• Results of group combustion experiment (Yamaguchi University)
• Water regeneration technology (Kurita Water Industries)

JAXA Exhibition Booth

As part of JAXA's PR activities for "Kibo" utilization, JAXA personnel were busy working for four days at its booth of the Conference where scale models of experiment devices and utilization service presentation panels were displayed. The Agency's exhibits included panels showing activities of private companies using "Kibo" such as Mitsui & Co., SpaceBD and Yakult. A total of 30 booths including NASA and private companies such as Boeing, Lockheed, Airbus, Sierra Nevada and NanoRacks had prepared their booth.

JAXA's booth (Credit: JAXA)

JAXA's booth where a presentation was being given (Credit: JAXA)

A snapshot showing JAXA's exhibition booth (Credit: JAXA)

Poster session (Credit: JAXA)

2019 ISS Research Award (Innovation in Biology and Medicine) granted

The team has developed a new rodent research capability on the ISS/"Kibo" for identifying gravitational effect on mice by means of an on-orbit centrifuge on Kibo. JAXA was granted the 2019 ISS R&D Conference Award for Compelling Results for the developed mouse habitat unit (MHU) or the multiple artificial-gravity research system ("MARS"). This award winning is the fourth consecutive achievement by Japanese researchers and JAXA for the last four years. Please visit the following web page for details of the award winning.

Related Topics

A mice habitat system in Kibo received the 2019 ISS Research Award for Innovation in Biology and Medicine! (September 11, 2019)