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Show Hilltop Times August 4, 2005 AF experiments return home with Discovery said Mr. Stropki, who was the initial program manager on the project in 2001. WRIGHT-PATTERSON "In those cases, it will not AFB, Ohio (AFPN)—Afbe possible to know just how ter existing nearly four soon it took to reach failyears on the International ure," he said. "While at the Space Station, more than same time, for other more 800 Air Force experiments successful candidates, the will finally return home with additional time in space will the Space Shuttle Discovery likely show that those matewhen it comes back to earth rials have a greater durabilin the next few days. ity and are able to survive the space environment for The space shuttle the longer periods needed launched July 26 from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on a 12-day for these materials." mission to test .new flight The goal of the experisafety procedures and de- ment is to discover how liver supplies to the station. materials are affected by The materials on the In- exposure in an effort to develop more durable, reliable ternational Space Station and affordable materials Experiment were installed and technologies for future by the Space Shuttle Discovery crew in August 2001 space vehicles. for what was to be a one"This information is year science experiment to crucial to providing the learn how different materineeded space materials for als react when exposed to the 21st century," said Pat the rigors of space, said Valentino, AFRL's current Michael Stropki, a scientist program manager. "New, with the Air Force Research affordable materials are Laboratory's materials and the enablers for advanced manufacturing directorate reusable launch systems here where the experiments and advanced spacecraft originated. systems, including optics, When the shuttle Columbia sensors, electronics, power, exploded on re-entry Feb. 1, coatings, structural materials and protection." 2003, the experiments were forced to wait for a return While at home on the to Earth aboard the recent orbiting space laboraDiscovery mission. tory, the experiments have been housed in four pas"While the experiments sive experiment carriers, were originally planned similar to suitcases, which to spend only one year in NASA astronauts placed at space, having existed four strategic locations on the years there may have erodoutside of the ISS. Some of ed away the entire material in a few of the specimens," the specimens include optiBY LARINE BARR Air Force Research Laboratory Public Affairs U.S. Air Force pholo Air Force and NASA integrators attach experiment material samples to a passive experiment container that has been bolted to the International Space Station since 2001. Air Force Research Laboratory scientists here are studying materials as part of the Materials on the International Space Station Experiment. The Discovery shuttle crew will remove the carriers and return them to Earth as part of their return-to-flight mission which launched July 26. cal materials and coatings, lightweight radiation shielding materials, thermal control coatings (flight paint), Kevlar and carbon foams, multilayer insulation materials, solar cell technology and specialty materials such as shape-memory foil and Xray resistant coatings. At the direction of AFRL scientists, NASA integrators placed most of the specimens in aluminum trays that hold roughly 46 samples. Other specimens were installed directly onto the trays, while a few specimens were bolted underneath the base plates to ensure they were exposed only to solar radiation. Besides Air Force experiments, the experiment payload carries 11 handpicked experiments from six Dayton, Ohio, area students in first through 10th grades. "Their assignment was to identify a problem associated with long duration flight, propose a solution and design a passive experiment to find a solution," Mr. Stropki said. Included are experiments to learn how contamination migrates in a microgravity environment, how materials degrade, radiation shielding tests and the effect of space on viral protein and nonpathogenic bacteria. All the specimens have faced such grueling perils as ultraviolet ray bombardment by highly corrosive atomic oxygen, and exposure to intense solar radiation during maximum solar activity, Ms. Valentino said. On Flight Day 9 of the Discovery mission, astronauts will uninstall the experiment containers from the exterior of the space station and return to Earth about three weeks after launch. From there, the materials will travel to NASA Langley Research Center in Virginia where scientists will de-integrate and disassemble the containers, then ship them back to AFRL scientists to be analyzed. "We are incredibly excited that (the experiments are) finally returning home," Ms. Valentino said. "We look forward to analyzing the flight samples and continuing this program for future experiments." ,***• GUARANTEED LOWEST RATE. WHO DESERVES IT MORE? • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••A-* For all you accomplish, Service Credit Union is proud to offer you the absolute best auto loan rate available. 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