Moon & Mars might get fire-resistant habitats with NASA's new fiery ISS experiment

As NASA is preparing to send humans back on the Moon, this time with an aim to build lunar bases, it is covering every aspect that would make those bases safer. One such aspect is understanding how fire behaves in outer space, so that engineers could design fire-safe homes on the Moon. To make that happen, NASA is launching a new experiment to the International Space Station (ISS) in order to study flammability and taming fire in little-known environments of space.

The SoFIE project

Short for Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction, the SoFIE experiment will be launched to the ISS onboard Northrop Grumman’s 17th cargo resupply mission which is targeted for February 19. NASA says that fire behaves differently in space and it is harder to extinguish in space as changes in gravity and airflow can alter the way it spreads. This new experiment is, therefore, important to chalk out plans for infrastructure on the Moon, where only 12 people have walked so far and eventually for Mars, where no human has ever stepped foot. Paul Ferkul, SoFIE project scientist at NASA’s Glenn Research Center said as per NASA's statement,

With NASA planning outposts on other planetary bodies like the Moon and Mars, we need to be able to live there with minimal risk. Understanding how flames spread and how materials burn in different environments is crucial for the safety of future astronauts.

Using the data from this experiment, NASA would also select materials and designs for spacesuits, cabins, and habitats and identify the best ways to put out fires or smoldering materials in space. Project manager Lauren Brown said that this experiment builds on NASA’s prior flammability research but it "will provide a foundation for continuing human spaceflight beyond low-Earth orbit". The agency is planning to operate SoFIE until November 2025 and a total of five investigations to study the flammability of plexiglass, cotton-based fabrics, and other materials commonly used in spaceflight will be conducted. While the experiment will commence with a goal to study fire safety in space, data from the same can also be used to improve fire safety on Earth, NASA says.

Image: NASA