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Your Orbiting Laboratory

Since the first crew’s arrival aboard more than twenty years ago, the International Space Station has evolved into a state-of-the-art scientific lab.

current mission

72

Expedition

7

Crew Members Aboard

Station Research and Technology

Station Science 101

Explore this page to learn the basics of many of the science and technology investigations — in disciplines ranging from astrophysics to combustion to microbiology, and more — that are being studied on your space station.

Learn More About Research Areas Studied

image of astronaut’s hands in glovebox

NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei works inside the Life Science Glovebox (LSG) for the Celestial Immunity study that may provide insights into new vaccines and drugs possibly advancing the commercialization of space.

NASA

Featured Video

International Space Station: Humanity’s Lab in Space

Orbiting more than 200 miles (320 km) above Earth, the International Space Station is a powerhouse of cutting-edge science that is unlocking discoveries not possible on Earth. We’re testing technologies that are critical to our return to the Moon and contributing to medical and social breakthroughs that improve life on our home planet.

Latest News

Muscle Research, Blood Tests To Promote Healthy Crews End Week

Vein Scans, Muscle Study on Station Informing Ways to Keep Crews Healthy

Heart Health

NASA’s Advancements in Space Continue Generating Products on Earth

Keeping Crews Healthy Farther Away from Earth Key Station Research Topic

Station Benefits for Humanity

The spectrum of the impact of the orbiting lab includes scientific, societal, exploration, and economic benefits as part of a growing low Earth orbit economy. Learn about the broad array of research sponsored by the station’s international partnerships and the benefits that have resulted.

Explore Station Benefits

This composite photograph, a combination of several distinct photographs, of Cuba, the Bahamas and southern Florida was captured as the International Space Station orbited 263 miles above the Caribbean Sea.

Got an Idea for a Microgravity Project?

Explore the unique opportunities the International Space Station provides researchers, scientists, payload developers, educators, students, and others.

Explore Opportunities

image of an astronaut working with a plant experiment in the space station

NASA astronaut and Expedition 69 Flight Engineer Stephen Bowen works on the Plant Habitat-03B Science Carrier, a space botany research device, in the International Space Station’s Harmony module.

NASA

Station Research Results

The International Space Station, in its third decade of continuous human presence, has far-reaching impact as a microgravity lab hosting scientific investigations and technology demonstrations from a range of fields.

Explore Station Results

NASA astronaut and Expedition 70 Flght Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli works inside the Life Science Glovebox for the Microgravity Associated Bone Loss-A investigation. She was processing bone cell samples obtained from human donors on Earth and exploring space-caused bone loss. Results may help doctors learn how to protect and treat astronauts on long-term missions and inform treatments for bone conditions on Earth.

In Space Production Applications

NASA’s In Space Production Applications (InSPA) portfolio is leveraging more than two decades of results from the International Space Station by continuing to demonstrate the benefits of microgravity for the development of new commercial technologies and products that have the potential to improve the quality of life on Earth for people everywhere.

Learn More About InSPA

image of red bubbles in experiment hardware

View of a CFE-2 (Capillary Flow Experiment – 2) Interior Corner Flow – 8 (ICF-8) vessel set up during a test run. Liquids behave differently in space than they do on Earth, so containers that can process, hold or transport them must be designed carefully to work in microgravity.

NASA

Space Station Research Explorer

Search or browse information at your fingertips about space station experiments, facilities, capabilities, and publications.

Explore Research Database

NASA astronauts Jessica Meir, in a green shirt, and Drew Morgan, in a blue shirt, with their hands inside white gloves visible through the top of the Life Sciences Glovebox, a lab facility the size of a large suitcase onboard the International Space Station. A video camera sits on top of the Glovebox, which contains mouse habitats and other equipment for scientific experiments.

Station Partnership Websites

Learn how the partnership participates and collaborates in science and technology research aboard the International Space Station.

Find More Information

image of the expedition crewmembers posing for the photo

The seven-member Expedition 67 crew poses for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Harmony module. Clockwise from bottom are, Roscosmos cosmonauts Commander Oleg Artemyev and Flight Engineer Denis Matveev; NASA Flight Engineers Bob Hines and Kjell Lindgren; Flight Engineer Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency); Roscosmos Flight Engineer Sergey Korsakov; and NASA Flight Engineer Jessica Watkins.

NASA

Ciencia en la estación

Aprende sobre las investigaciones y otras actividades a bordo de la estación espacial.

Aprende más sobre la ciencia

imagen de un astronauta trabajando en la configuración del hardware de una investigación de combustible

El astronauta de la NASA Frank Rubio trabajando en el bastidor integrado de combustión (CIR) de la Ignición y Extinción de Combustible Sólido (SoFIE) a bordo de la EEI en el laboratorio Destiny, EE.UU.

NASA

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Sign up for the Space Station Research Weekly Newsletter to get the latest information about what is happening onboard your orbiting laboratory.

Against the black backdrop of the vacuum of space, NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, entirely shielded by a spacesuit, works on maintenance outside the International Space Station. Using a wrench-type tool in his hands, he makes adjustments to a white outer layer of the orbiting laboratory.

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Discover More Topics

ISS National Laboratory

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International Space Station

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