page_title: ISS National Lab
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: ISS National Lab / History
caption_attribution_description: English: The International Space Station is featured in this image photographed by an STS-132 crew member on board the Space Shuttle Atlantis after the station and shuttle began their post-undocking relative separation. Undocking of the two spacecraft occurred at 10:22 CDT on 23 May 2010, ending a seven-day stay that saw the addition of a new station module, Rassvet, replacement of batteries and resupply of the orbiting outpost.
context_page_description: The ISS US National Lab, commonly known as the ISS National Lab, is a US government-funded national laboratory established in 2005 by the 2005 NASA Authorization Act. With principal research facilities located in the United States Orbital Segment of the International Space Station, the Laboratory conducts research in life sciences, physical sciences, technology development and remote sensing for a broad range of academic, government and commercial users. Of the 270 payloads that the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space has sent to the ISS, 176 have been for commercial companies including Merck, Novartis, Eli Lilly and Company, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, Honeywell, and Procter & Gamble.
context_section_description: The ISS has been an operational science platform since the installation of the Destiny module in February 2001. The 2005 NASA Authorization Act designated the US segment of ISS as a National Lab in order to “…help improve life on Earth, foster relationships among NASA, other Federal agencies, and the private sector, and advance STEM education through utilization of unique ISS Capabilities in microgravity.” In the NASA Authorization Act of 2010, Congress directed NASA to choose a not-for-profit entity to manage the US National Lab. In August 2011, NASA entered into a 10-year agreement with CASIS in order to fully develop the ISS US segment as a National Laboratory. In July 2017, NASA extended the contract with CASIS to manage the US National Lab through September 2024.
caption: International Space Station after undocking of STS-132
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