Nasa to study Sunita William’s tests

US space agency Nasa scientists plan to spend next 12 to 18 months analysing the results of experiments conducted by Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams during her stay in space.

The study of a group of experiments she dubbed “lava lamp” will help engineers design more efficient fluid management systems, such as fuel tanks, cooling systems and water recycling systems, for future space missions, Nasa said.

“I call it the ‘lava lamp’ experiment because some of the fluid is pink, and we hang out watching it with video and pictures,” Williams wrote in her mission log at the International Space Station. “If only we had a black light.” While these Capillary Flow

Experiments (CFE) are mesmerising, they actually have nothing to do with lava or lamps. They are a suite of three experiments designed to investigate how fluid flows in microgravity.

On Earth, fluid management systems rely on gravity. In a car, for instance, a pipe runs from the bottom of the fuel tank to the engine. Gravity positions the fuel at the bottom of the tank, and the fuel pump forces it through the pipe and up to the engine. But in space, where gravity is virtually absent, fluids aren’t so predictable. Propellants float around inside of tanks, and water drops bounce about recycling systems.

During her long stay aboard the station, Sunita Williams worked with the Capillary Flow Experiments more than twice as many times as any other astronaut, earning herself a regal title from the team.