Space Exploration Initiative

By Martin NisserThe ability to deploy large space structures is key to enabling long-duration and long-distance space missions, supportin...

The Microsoft Azure Kinect is a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) time-of-flight (ToF) depth camera which can provide high resolution near-...

The objective of this project is to experimentally asses the impact of gravity reference frame on the experience of Virtual Reality (VR)...

By Aleksy Dojnow

By Ebru Kurbak

By Xinyi Yang

By Michael Luu

​The environmental conditions of prolonged spaceflight pose significant psychological risks for astronauts. In particular, crews of futur...

Project Overview The Space Grip Shoe (SGS) is an iconic concept presented across the history of space fiction, from 2001: A Space Od...

By Alvin Donel Harvey 

By Rachel Bellisle

By Cody Paige & M. Regina A. Moreno

By Michelle LinIn microgravity, the proprioceptive system undergoes adaptations due to the lack of constant gravitational cues [1]. Photo...

This research highlights opportunities to bring the rich culture of Earth-based fermentation practices to space to design beneficial appl...

The Interplanetary Cookbook, developed by Maggie Coblentz, presents thought-provoking recipes and zero-g kitchenware for the future of li...

The  Interplanetary Gastronomy research  aims to address the unique challenges and opportunities associated with eating in...

Overview: How will we build the coming generations of Space Architecture—the modules, space ships, and space stations that will ensc...

Building an open, shared, and collaborative future of lunar exploration.Explore the Lunar Open Architecture (LOA) at loa.mit.edu.&nb...

Our journeys off-world have taught us just as much about humanity as the harsh environment of space. For the past 20 years, we have had a...

Living in space could have significant physical and mental impacts on astronauts. Wearables have the potential to play a critical role in...

Sparking conversations through artwork  and envisioning future values for a spacefaring society

Impenetrable darkness, extreme pressure, cold water, and disorienting equilibrium. Deep sea creatures live in a world that is closer to o...

MicroPET aims to identify how microorganisms can efficiently degrade plastic waste and produce higher-value plastic materials, a process ...

Space architecture projects for the Mechanical Artifact: Ultra Space course in partnership with the Center for Collaborative Arts and Med...

Rapid prototyping platforms such as 3D printers used for digital fabrication are today able to manufacture custom objects for specific ta...

By Nancy Valladares and Rae Yuping HsuThis project is an art performance that seeks to rethink imaginaries of multispecies surv...

"Autonomous operations are critical for the success, safety, and crew survival of NASA deep space missions beyond low Earth orbit, includ...

The Tidmarsh Living Observatory Portal is a research project that focuses on the design and fabrication of a pavilion that will gene...

By Larissa Zhou and Adam ZacharFood is crucial to maintaining the physical and psychological health of humans in space. Eating food ...

By Somayajulu Dhulipala and Manwei ChanAs humanity explores deeper into space, long-duration missions will require horticulture activitie...

Through the ages, artists, writers, and filmmakers have always been inspired by space. Artists’ visionary depictions of space as an envir...

By Po-Hao ChiHow could microgravity/hypergravity shape our perceptual experience of listening with weightlessness? How can we seek to exp...

How did life originate? Nobody knows. Life might not even be native to our Earth - it might have come from asteroids or the interstellar ...

The Miniature Optical Steered Antenna for Intersatellite Communications (MOSAIC)By Shreeyam KackerThe Miniature Optical Steered Ante...

Ever wish you could toss your folded up tent and have it self-assemble mid-air?  Well...you can. In a zero gravity environment.Self ...

Solid-state microfrabricated devices are in development to replace contemporary heavy mechanical components for use in spacecraft propell...

An astronaut's ability to leverage the sense of touch is substantially reduced when wearing a protective, pressurized spacesuit. We imagi...

The Space Exploration Initiative charters an annual ZERO-G parabolic flight for 14-15 projects and 25 researchers across MIT Media Lab, s...

When imagining human life in space, how will we express our humanity and creativity in an alien environment? Can the art we make both ref...

A major concern for manned missions is space radiation. Ionizing radiation is known to pose both acute and chronic risks to many organism...

Overview: The outermost skin of a space-based structure is designed using materials known to protect against the harsh elements of space....

Climate CubeSat Co-Building (C3) The Media Lab Space Exploration Initiative is driven by an effort to democratize the futu...

Studying group dynamics in space environments with virtual reality simulations to inform the design of future governance systems

In 2015, the director general of the European Space Agency (ESA), Jan Wörner, introduced the concept of the “Moon Village.” Inspired by t...

Wearables are being widely researched for monitoring individual's health and wellbeing. Current generation wearable devices sense an indi...

On Earth, morning, noon, and night have their own specific meanings. The feeling of a second or a minute passing by, the shortening of th...

In recent years, there has been an increase in low-cost and open-source electronic and chemical sensors that hobbyists, concerned citizen...

The Lut Desert of Iran is one of the most similar regions to Mars. Close to that area, there are vernacular adobe architectures that are ...

SpaceHuman is a soft robotics device designed to facilitate the exploration of environments with reduced gravity in a view of democratiza...

The MIT Media Lab Space Exploration Initiative is pushing the boundaries of space exploration innovation across the Media Lab’s many heal...

Biological neuronal networks are highly complex and interconnected with superior information processing capabilities. Such networks have ...

 A multi-course tasting menu was flown on a zero gravity flight in August 2019.  Five specially crafted dishes were consum...

This project asks, how can we transmit experiences across space and time? The launching point of the project is to create a drawing that ...

A molecular gastronomy experiment was flown on a zero gravity flight in August 2019, using spherification techniques to create recipes in...

Space/Craft explores sculpting in zero gravity. Making artistic works by hand is a fundamentally human act, but how will it transfor...

Wax-based hybrid rocket propellants, including paraffin (common candlewax) and beeswax show promise as high-performing hybrid rocket prop...

Games are a uniquely human endeavour, reducing stress and supporting mental well-being. Astronauts aboard the ISS have created their own ...

The widespread synthesis of common organic building blocks in space could have biased life beyond Earth towards chemical similarities to ...

EBIFA (Everything Beautiful Is Far Away) is a crystalline robotic device that carried a tooth to outer space. EBIFA's form and ...

​​​​​​​​​The Orbit Weaver Suit for zero gravity was designed by Media Lab Director's Fellow Andrea Lauer in collaboration with ...

Structurally, zero gravity means that we do not have to contend with architecture's greatest arch-nemesis, gravity. This opens up a new w...

Expansion microscopy (ExM) is a new imaging modality developed by MIT Media Lab's Synthetic Neurobiology group. ExM allows biomolecules t...

We study textiles and nets as a base form for growing infrastructure and allowing reconfigurable sensing on low gravity bodies (for insta...

Gravity anchors all existence on Earth.It pulls a chaotic world to one single point in every moment of life. Even though gravity is every...

The brain uses space to index, organize, and retrieve memories. However, our sense of space depends on our perception of gravity. We...

Today, the environments that humans occupy in space are designed for survival. Humans are carefully shuttled to and from space, and durin...

The Scratch Team invited young people from around the world to create Scratch projects designed specifically to be played in zero gr...

Life on Mars, if it exists, could have been transferred between Earth and Mars due to meteorite impacts. The Search for Extra-Terrestrial...

Each new technology forces us to confront who we are as humans.  As technological innovations in deep space exploration keep advanci...

Traditional additive manufacturing processes, especially those that make use of liquid resin as the feedstock, are constrained by the gra...