Oct 20 2009
From The Space Library
Boeing consultant H. Gary Pippin, and other scientists associated with MISSE, a joint project of NASA and DOD, opened two suitcase-like boxes containing samples of Mirror and window material, solar materials, paints, polymers, and other materials. Crew members had attached these materials to the ISS in March 2008, and NASA astronauts John D. “Danny” Olivas and Nicole P. Stott had retrieved the materials on 1 September 2009 during an STS-128 spacewalk. Space Shuttle Discovery had returned the materials to Earth on 11 September 2009. Opening the samples in a clean room at LaRC, MISSE scientists saw that some had fared well. However, others appeared bleached or discolored, and some had surface traces of small meteorite impacts. Observing their change in color, Pippin remarked that some samples had failed. The full assessment of the contents of the boxes, requiring ultraviolet light, magnifiers, and the analysis of 50 data recorders, would help NASA scientists select materials for use on future missions. Retired MISSE Chief Scientist William H. Kinard explained that NASA had flown approximately 5,000 samples on the ISS before using them in the design of a space vehicle or satellite. The experiment’s purpose was to determine which materials could survive the extreme conditions of space. With the upcoming retirement of the Space Shuttle, the contents of the two boxes represented the final MISSE mission for NASA’s LaRC.
Diane Tennant, “NASA Opens Suitcase from Space,” Virginian-Pilot (Hampton Roads, VA), 21 October 2009; NASA Langley Research Center, “MISSE Suitcases Return Home: Media Invited To View Grand Opening,” LaRC news release 09-083, 14 October 2009, http://www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/releases/2009/09-083.html (accessed 9 January 2012).
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