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SpaceX crew plays Ukuele in space
SpaceX got its all-amateur crew into orbit following Wednesday night’s launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. (Sept. 17)
AP
Space might be the final frontier, but even as more satellites and spacecraft are sent into orbit, the pace of research is still bound to Earth.
Currently, data collected by NASA researchers in space is downlinked to Earth, with a potential six to eight-week turnaround process.
But with the help of a project being developed with IBM’s Austin-based space technology team and advanced edge computing, that data processing could be sped up to a day.
The project involves edge computing, which in simple terms means computing that’s done at or near the source of where data is produced. Edge computing helps companies process massive amounts of data in real-time, while away from their physical networks. For example, companies can use it to work with remote employees, in banking to analyze ATM feeds in real-time and in retail to personalize shopping experiences for customers.
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Naeem Altaf, IBM’s chief technology officer for space tech industries, is leading an Austin-based team that is working to speed up this crucial data processing work. The project is using advanced edge computing technology that will allow much of the data processing work to be done in space.
“As soon as a device captures information, our process will start and within 24 hours we have results,” Altaf said.
One of the project’s first uses will be on the International Space Station, through NASA’s JSC Microbiology Laboratory, for a DNA sequencing project called Genes in Space-3. A team will use the technology to analyze environmental microbial DNA collected from swabs from the International Space Station surfaces and potable water samples.
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The findings that come from the samples collected will help NASA prepare for landing humans on the Moon and eventually Mars, by analyzing how the space environment and long-term exposure to radiation affect the genetics of organisms from plants to people.
Currently, researchers on the project are periodically analyzing water and surface samples found on the International Space Station by taking sample swipes of surfaces. The samples are then run through a candy-bar-sized DNA sequencer for processing. Once collected, the researchers feed the information into the processer. This generates lots and lots of data that now has to be sent back to Earth and through data centers for processing. This currently can take several weeks.
But by using edge technology, the process can be accelerated, and results of the analysis will be available both on the International Space Station and relayed back via to Earth through a messaging queue.
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With the help of IBM’s cloud here on Earth and an HPE Spaceborn Computer-2, and Red Hat CodeReady Containers in space, the data could instead be analyzed and reduced right on the International Space Station. IBM researchers back on earth will then be able to develop, test and make their code ready to be pushed back to the International Space Station.
The team is also working with NASA scientist and principal investigator Sara Wallace, who is responsible for leading these science experiments on the space station.
“The result is faster insights, improved response times and better bandwidth availability,” Altaf said. “There’s less latency because data doesn’t have to be sent in bulk to a data center to be processed. With properly equipped instruments onboard information not only can be computed, but can also be relayed back to human crews without the need of sending all the raw data, and just obtaining the desired results”
The solution is designed to increase the usability of any information collected by both speeding up the process, and filtering out any unusable data. This also increases the ability of researchers to be independent of a ground computing system.
“The lifespan of data when it’s produced is fairly short for the window of opportunity. If you miss that window the data is not that useful anymore,” Altaf said.
The project comes as NASA is launching its Artemis program, which aims to land a woman and man on the moon by 2024. NASA plans to use advancements made by the program for future missions to Mars. The research being done is expected to help identify microbes in-flight for future missions, which Altaf said will become even more important as NASA explores the moon and Mars.
He said the ability to speed up data processing will become increasingly crucial as NASA explores further into space.
“We’re going to the moon in the next four years. Distances are much higher over there. Here you’re only 250 miles away. So when you’re looking at this very extreme edge site, then it becomes more important,” Altaf said.
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