Starlab George Washington Carver Science Park Leadership Team Announced
The founding leadership team for the Starlab George Washington Carver (GWC) Science Park has been announced by Nanoracks.
“We are excited to announce this exceptional and renowned team of global experts joining Nanoracks on our mission to build and operate the Starlab GWC Science Park and to enable a sustainable space research and industrial economy.”
Marshal Smith, Senior vice president of Space Systems at Nanoracks.
The team will consist of The Universities Space Research Association, ZIN Technologies, The Ohio State University, and the International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation. The GWC Science Park, established by Nanoracks, is the world’s first-ever science park in space, operating today on the International Space Station (ISS), and soon on future commercial platforms.
“We are excited to announce this exceptional and renowned team of global experts joining Nanoracks on our mission to build and operate the Starlab GWC Science Park and to enable a sustainable space research and industrial economy,” said Marshal Smith, Senior vice president of Space Systems at Nanoracks. “Our team looks forward to collaborating with each of these adept organizations as we design the first-ever continuously crewed, free-flying commercial space station and honor one of the greatest scientists in American history.”
The Starlab George Washington Carver Science Park will leverage a successful terrestrial business model where scientists and industry experts share findings, collaborate, and use new technologies to advance both scientific and commercial endeavors. This effort compliments Nanoracks’ long history in supporting universities, start-up companies, non-profits, and other organizations’ research on the ISS. The GWC Science Park goals will be accomplished within its four main operational components, which will include a biology lab, plant habitation lab, physical science and materials research lab, and an open workbench area.
The roles of each initial consortium member are as follows:
Universities Space Research Association (USRA) – Cleveland, OH: USRA is a trusted NASA research partner and fields among the largest collections of space-specialized principal investigators. USRA will manage the GWC and drive use within its existing network.
ZIN Technologies (ZIN) – Middleburg Heights, OH: ZIN is a leader in providing advanced engineering solutions and product development for NASA, DOD, and private industry. Since 2001, ZIN has led the design, development, and operations of biological and physical science facilities and instruments on the ISS. ZIN will develop the customer research and lab hardware production in collaboration with Nanoracks and Lockheed Martin.
The Ohio State University (Ohio State) – Columbus, OH: Ohio State will lead university business and research development efforts and drive academic and agricultural technology (AgTech) activities, through the College of Engineering and the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences. Ohio State will also develop a ground-analog laboratory for terrestrial control missions in 1-G (Earth gravity) while paralleling space science activities and serving as a training facility for Principal Investigators to accustom themselves to the space research environment
The International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation (IASP) – Málaga, Spain: IASP is an organization of over 300 science and technology parks that links over 115,000 tech-based companies and research partners with representation on every continent. IASP will coordinate Starlab’s global outreach efforts to the science community. Nanoracks’ existing commercial research lab on the International Space Station is the first IASP member laboratory in space.
Nanoracks, in collaboration with Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin, was recently awarded a $160 million contract by NASA to design its Starlab commercial space station as part of the agency’s Commercial Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Development program. The GWC Science Park will be the core science element of Starlab once it achieves initial operational capability in 2027.
(Source: Nanoracks news release. Image from file)