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Scientists in the News

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cientists-turned-astronauts have been in the news often over the years. Here are a few more stories of scientists who have used time in space—either by themselves or by sending ex-

periments aloft—to make new discoveries:

Searching for Sprites: Japanese researcher Dr. Mitsuteru Sato created an experiment to search for sprites and elves. Not the kind from fairy tales, though—those are names given to atmospheric displays inside storms. Sato built a machine to detect and examine these displays, and it was successfully used on the ISS in 2013. Surviving Space: The ISS and other spacecraft are made of dozens of types of materials: metals, plastics, fabrics, and more. Knowing how well those sort of things will survive and function in space is a key part of astronaut safety. In 2014, NASA’s Kim de Groh won an award for the studies her team did on a wide variety of materials.

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