{"id":55750,"date":"2016-08-26T16:04:00","date_gmt":"2016-08-26T20:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?migration=converted-node-390022"},"modified":"2023-07-26T14:49:03","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T18:49:03","slug":"spacex-dragon-splashes-down-with-crucial-nasa-research-samples","status":"publish","type":"press-release","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/spacex-dragon-splashes-down-with-crucial-nasa-research-samples\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX Dragon Splashes Down with Crucial NASA Research Samples"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"NASA TV screenshot of SpaceX Dragon spacecraft departing ISS on Aug. 26, 2016.\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png 2880w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=300,188 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=768,480 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=1024,640 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=1536,960 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=2048,1280 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=400,250 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=600,375 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=900,563 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=1200,750 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?resize=2000,1250 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">NASA TV screenshot of SpaceX Dragon spacecraft departing ISS on Aug. 26, 2016. <strong>Credits: NASA Television<\/strong><\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u200bSpaceX\u2019s Dragon cargo spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean at 11:47 a.m. EDT Friday, Aug. 26, southwest of Baja California with more than 3,000 pounds of NASA cargo, science and technology demonstration samples from the International Space Station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Dragon spacecraft will be taken by ship to a port near Los Angeles, where some cargo will be removed and returned to NASA immediately. Dragon then will be prepared for a return trip to SpaceX\u2019s test facility in McGregor, Texas, for processing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When it arrived at the station July 20, Dragon delivered the first of two <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/feature\/meet-the-international-docking-adapter\/\">international docking adapters<\/a> (IDAs) in its external cargo hold, or \u201ctrunk.\u201d The IDAs will be used by commercial spacecraft now in development for transporting astronauts to the station as part of NASA\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/nasa.gov\/commercialcrew\" rel=\"noopener\">Commercial Crew Program<\/a>. The initial adapter was installed during an Aug. 19 spacewalk by Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams and Flight Engineer Kate Rubins of NASA. The second adapter is being built and will be delivered on a future Dragon cargo resupply mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Among the experiment samples returning Friday are those from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/station\/research\/experiments\/1914.html\">Heart Cells<\/a> study, which is looking at how microgravity affects human heart cells. The U.S. National Laboratory investigation is studying how microgravity changes the human heart, and how those changes vary between individuals. Deep space missions including the journey to Mars will require long periods of space travel, which creates increased risk of health problems such as muscle atrophy, including possible atrophy of the heart muscle. Heart cells cultured aboard the space station for one month will be analyzed for cellular and molecular changes. Results could advance the study of heart disease and the development of drugs and cell replacement therapy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Samples will also be returned from two rodent-based investigations, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/station\/research\/experiments\/1992.html\">Mouse Epigenetics<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/station\/research\/experiments\/1722.html\">Rodent Research-3-Eli Lilly<\/a> experiments. The mouse model is useful for showing how much shorter stays by mice in the low-Earth environment can be used to infer how similar conditions may affect future human exploration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Mouse Epigenetics, researchers are exploring altered gene expression and DNA by tracking changes in the organs of male mice that spend one month in space, and examining changes in the DNA of their offspring. In Rodent Research-3-Eli Lilly, scientists are looking at rapid loss of bone and muscle mass in the legs and spine, and comparing it to what is experienced by people with muscle wasting diseases or with limited mobility on Earth and testing an antibody known to prevent muscle wasting in mice on Earth. This U.S. National Laboratory experiment is sponsored by pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Co. and the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also returning are samples from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/station\/research\/experiments\/1949.html\">Multi-Omics<\/a> experiment. This research is analyzing the composition of microbes in the human digestive system and how they may affect the human immune system. Researchers may be able to identify bacterial or metabolic biomarkers that could be useful for astronaut health management, and therefore future human exploration of the solar system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dragon is currently the only space station resupply spacecraft able to return a significant amount of cargo to Earth. The spacecraft <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/press-release\/nasa-sends-trailblazing-science-cargo-to-international-space-station-aboard-spacex\">lifted off<\/a> from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida July 18 carrying almost 5,000 pounds of supplies and scientific cargo on the company\u2019s ninth commercial resupply mission to the station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The International Space Station is a convergence of science, technology and human innovation that demonstrates new technologies and makes research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. The space station has been occupied continuously since November 2000. In that time, more than 200 people and a variety of international and commercial spacecraft have visited the orbiting laboratory. The space station remains the springboard to NASA\u2019s next great leap in human space exploration, including the journey to Mars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Get more information about SpaceX\u2019s mission to the International Space Station at:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/spacex<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Find more information about the International Space Station, its crews and their research at:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/station<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>-end-<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Cheryl Warner<br \/>\nHeadquarters, Washington<br \/>\n202-358-1100<br \/>\ncheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov<br \/>\nDan Huot<br \/>\nJohnson Space Center, Houston<br \/>\n281-483-5111<br \/>\ndaniel.g.huot@nasa.gov<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u200bSpaceX\u2019s Dragon cargo spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean at 11:47 a.m. EDT Friday, Aug. 26, southwest of Baja California with more than 3,000 pounds of NASA cargo, science and technology demonstration samples from the International Space Station. The Dragon spacecraft will be taken by ship to a port near Los Angeles, where some [...]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":58558,"template":"","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"16-090","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"RELEASE","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[]},"categories":[3190,2801,3141,2656,2735,2867],"news-tags":[12349],"internal-terms":[9514,9508],"coauthors":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"SpaceX Dragon Splashes Down with Crucial NASA Research Samples","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/spacex-dragon-splashes-down-with-crucial-nasa-research-samples\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/spacex-dragon-splashes-down-with-crucial-nasa-research-samples\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png"},"articleSection":"Missions","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"NASA"}],"creator":["NASA"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["NASA Centers & Facilities","NASA Headquarters","Commercial Resupply","Commercial Space","Expedition 48","Humans in Space","International Space Station (ISS)"],"dateCreated":"2016-08-26T20:04:00Z","datePublished":"2016-08-26T20:04:00Z","dateModified":"2023-07-26T18:49:03Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"SpaceX Dragon Splashes Down with Crucial NASA Research Samples\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/spacex-dragon-splashes-down-with-crucial-nasa-research-samples\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2016-08-26T20:04:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"Missions\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"NASA Centers & Facilities,NASA Headquarters,Commercial Resupply,Commercial Space,Expedition 48,Humans in Space,International Space Station (ISS)\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"NASA\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":4,"featured_image":{"id":58558,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dragon_departure_160826.png","title":"dragon_departure_160826","alt":"NASA TV screenshot of SpaceX Dragon spacecraft departing ISS on Aug. 26, 2016.","caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/55750"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/press-release"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/55750\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":370380,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/55750\/revisions\/370380"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55750"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=55750"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=55750"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=55750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}