NASA is making progress in improving the life support system in space

Blue Origin's Orbital Reef space station marked a “milestone” in its experimental mission, in collaboration with NASA, to develop its own life support system. This progress is part of the US Space Agency's efforts towards new destinations in low Earth orbit.

NASA has revealed that four key milestones are part of the agreement awarded to Blue Origin in 2021, under the NASA Space Act. These milestones focus on research and design of systems to keep air and water clean and stored for human spaceflight.

Angela Hart, director of NASA's Low Earth Orbit Commercial Development Program, highlighted the importance of these achievements to ensure the sustainability of commercial destinations that can sustain human life in space. This would allow NASA astronauts to continue their scientific research in a unique microgravity environment.

The completed developments provide important information on the progress of the design and development of the Orbital Reef Station, which, like the International Space Station, will contain a regenerative system to recycle and recover water and oxygen, thus reducing the need to launch mass from Earth.

Pollutant monitoring testing, water pollutant oxidation, urine water recovery, and water tank testing are some of the achievements achieved. These tests evaluate different technologies for cleaning, recovering and storing water and air in space.

NASA supports the design and development of several commercial space stations, including Orbital Reef, through funded and unfunded agreements. This commercial strategy will allow the agency to focus on missions to the Moon and Mars, while continuing to use low Earth orbit as a deep space training platform.