Tobias Niederwieser

University of Colorado Boulder | CUB · Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences (AES)

The Freezer / Refrigerator / Incubator Device for Galley and Experimentation (FRIDGE) is a middeck locker-sized unit developed by BioServe Space Technologies for use within the Galley rack of the International Space Station (ISS) for food storage as well as in the EXPRESS rack for science experiment support. FRIDGE was optimized to provide a large...

When the Artemis missions launch, NASA's Orion spacecraft (and crew as of the Artemis II mission) will be exposed to the deep space radiation environment beyond the protection of Earth's magnetosphere. Hence, it is essential to characterize the effects of space radiation, microgravity, and the combination thereof on cells and organisms, i.e., to qu...

Algal-based photobioreactors offer a promising bioregenerative technology that can perform the functions of air revitalization, water recycling, and food production in a human spacecraft life support system. In order to assess their performance in this context, this study exposed a non-axenic green algal culture (Chlorellacea) to an atmospheric pre...

One of the crucial steps in the development of self-sufficient extra-terrestrial human colonies is water and biomass management. One of the attempts to simplify the treatment scheme is to directly implement greywater into soil-less cultivation as no greywater treatment unit would be necessary. In this case, the most essential key factor is the infl...

With the continued expansion of human presence into space, typical mission durations will routinely exceed six months and extend to distances beyond the Moon. As such, sending periodic resupply vehicles, as currently provided to the International Space Station, will likely no longer be feasible. Instead, self-sustaining life support systems that re...

An Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) is necessary for humans to survive in the hostile environment of space. As future missions move beyond Earth orbit for extended durations, reclaiming human metabolic waste streams for recycled use becomes increasingly important. Historically, these functions have been accomplished using a var...

Recent science results from the robotic Mars program revealed a new perspective on the Martian environment that is directly relevant to human exploration. These include the discovery of strong residual crustal magnetism, which may locally shield a crew from charged particles; the discovery of perchlorate globally in the soil on Mars; the presence o...

As part of the Rodent Habitat project being planned to enable physiological research onboard the ISS, live rodents (mice and rats) shall be transported in the sealed pressurized environment of commercial cargo resupply carriers such as SpaceX’s Dragon or Orbital’s Cygnus. The previously flown Animal Enclosure Module (AEM) has been upgraded by NASA...