jsc2017m000907_Making-fiber-Optics-in-Space

To demonstrate potential scientific and commercial merits of manufacturing exotic optical fibers in space, a private company is working with NASA on an investigation headed to the International Space Station on the next Dragon cargo ship. Matthew Napoli, vice president of In-Space Operations for Made In Space, explains how the Optical Fiber Production in Microgravity investigation could lead to the production of materials with better properties, setting the stage for large scale manufacturing of high-quality fiber in space. This investigation follows up on research conducted in the 1990s by scientists at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.