WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Samples from BioNutrients-3, along with other valuable experiments, are set to return from the International Space Station to earth Thursday.
The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft supporting the company's 33rd commercial resupply mission for NASA, carrying the bio-nutrients samples, will depart the space station at 11:45 a.m. ET.
Certain nutrients critical for human health lack the shelf life needed to span multi-year missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. NASA's BioNutrients-3 is part of an experiment series testing ways to use microorganisms to produce these nutrients in space and on demand.
The on-demand nature of this experiment is similar to making nutrient-dense fermented foods on Earth, such as how milk is transformed by good bacteria into yogurt. But in this case, there is a focus on producing specific types and quantities of nutrients essential for future space explorers, NASA said in a press release.
Once the samples return to Earth, the science team at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley will perform analysis procedures. Results from this study can help NASA develop methods to produce vital nutrients that could support human deep space exploration as part of the U.S. space agency's Artemis campaign.
NASA's BioNutrients-3 is part of the Synthetic Biology project, which is funded by the Game Changing Development program within NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate.
Copyright(c) 2026 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2026 AFX News
