SSEP Mission 18 to the International Space Station (ISS)

Information to be determined is in RED TEXT below.
Information that is subject to change is in GREEN TEXT below.

Last update of this page: February 2, 2024, 1:28 pm ET

 

Payload Ferry Flights and ISS Crew Data

Ferry Vehicle to ISS: SpaceX CRS-31

Current Launch Date: NET (No Earlier Than) September 17, 2024 (useful reference NASA Consolidated Launch Schedule at nasa.gov)
Crew: 
none
Launch Site: Launch Complex (LC) 39A, NASA Kennedy Space Center, FL

Berthing at ISS: 1 to 4 days after launch

Launch Date History:
Initial Launch Date: September 17, 2024

Ferry Vehicle for Return to Earth: SpaceX CRS-31
Crew: none
Unberth/Landing Date: TBD
Landing Site: splashdown off the Atlantic or Pacific coast

Payload Duration on ISS: nominally 4-6 weeks; expectation 4 weeks

Notable: visit the NASA ISS website for a comprehensive overview of ISS construction, on-orbit research, operations, crews, and multimedia galleries; read about the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft

ISS Crew for SSEP Mission 18 Payload Operations: Expedition TBD (see Expeditions Schedule at nasa.gov) crew to be listed once closer to launch date


SSEP Mission 18 to ISS: Payload and Program Data

Payload Designation: SSEP20 – Surveyor (named for NASA’s Surveyor Program, which soft-landed 7 spacecraft on the lunar surface in advance of the Apollo Moon landings. Starting with Mission 16 to ISS, SSEP experiment payloads are named for NASA’s robotic lunar exploration programs in advance of the Apollo missions; for SSEP Missions 12 to 15, experiment payloads were named for NASA human spaceflight programs; for SSEP Missions 5 to 11, experiment payloads were named for Apollo Command Modules; prior to Mission 5, payloads were named for Apollo Lunar Modules.)

Number of Student Team Flight Experiments: 39
37 communities are participating in SSEP Mission 18 to ISS
39 flight experiments were selected, with 35 communities flying 1 experiment and 2 communities flying 2 experiments 

Payload: Suite of Fluids Mixing Enclosure (FME – Mark II) Mini-laboratories
Stowage: Nanoracks Express Rack in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM; also nicknamed Kibo) on ISS

History: 
The 20th SSEP flight opportunity—SSEP Mission 18 to the International Space Station—was announced by the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE) and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Space Education on February 2, 2023, with accompanying Video Clips describing SSEP by Center Director, Dr. Jeff Goldstein: Clip 1 (NASA), Clip 2 (NASA)

Current Status:  
All 39 SSEP Mission 18 flight experiments have been selected. Flight teams are now conducting preliminary tests and optimizing their experiments before they finalize their experiment details.

A List of Important SSEP Mission 18 to ISS Subpages:
SSEP Mission 18 to ISS: Critical Timeline
SSEP Mission 18 to ISS: Mini-Laboratory Operation
SSEP Mission 18 to ISS: Mission Patch Art and Design Competition
SSEP Mission 18 to ISS: Flight Operations

The Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) is a program of the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE) in the U.S., and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Space Education internationally. It is enabled through a strategic partnership with DreamUp PBC and NanoRacks LLC, which are working with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the utilization of the International Space Station as a National Laboratory. SSEP is the first pre-college STEM education program that is both a U.S. national initiative and implemented as an on-orbit commercial space venture.