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BEAM
About this film
The Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) is an expandable habitat technology demonstration on the International Space Station. Expandable habitats greatly decrease the amount of transport volume for future space missions. These “expandables” are lightweight and require minimal payload volume on a rocket, but expand after being deployed in space to potentially provide a comfortable area for astronauts to live and work. They also provide protection from solar and cosmic radiation, space debris, atomic oxygen, ultraviolet radiation and other elements of the space environment; an important aspect of the project is to measure many environmental characteristics to quantify the module’s protective qualities. BEAM is the first human-rated expandable structure to be launched to space. It will spend two years attached to the space station, during which time crew members will enter BEAM periodically to take measurements and monitor its performance. BEAM is also demonstrating the value of the innovative cost-sharing partnership between NASA and Bigelow Aerospace, in which Bigelow is leveraging technology NASA conceived in the 1990s and licensed to the company. NASA and Bigelow Aerospace a…
Directors & creators
NASA
Subjects
NASA
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