Notre Dame joins Universities Space Research Association
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The University of Notre Dame has been inducted into the Universities Space Research Association, a consortium of 121 universities that works to advance space-related education and research.
The association cited the university’s research programs in physics, astronomy, earth sciences, and aerospace and mechanical engineering and its collaboration among in-house departments as well as with other institutions.
To be eligible for membership in the association, a university must demonstrate significant contributions in space- or aeronautics-related research by faculty and a commitment to a course of studies and research leading to a doctorate in a related field.
Clive Neal, a professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, said the association membership reflects “an important recognition of Notre Dame’s deep involvement in space activities.”
“Utilizing the space environment to conduct experiments has been revolutionary,” Neal said in a news release. “It has led to new materials and new pharmaceuticals. And now, as we understand and document useful resources on different planetary bodies, it is crucial that we understand how to utilize those resources in a very different environment from what we are used to on this planet.”
Recent space-related research by university faculty includes the first-ever analysis of moon samples collected by Apollo 17 astronauts in 1972 and an examination of how microgravity aboard the International Space Station affects the development of organoids that could lead to better models for cancer research. Organoids are tissue cultures typically derived from stem cells.
The Universities Space Research Association is a not-for-profit corporation founded in 1969 under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences.
“Space is an exciting new frontier for making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth,” Jeffrey Rhoads, vice president for research and a professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, said in the news release. “We are grateful to the USRA for recognizing the distinctive contribution Notre Dame can make to these efforts.”
Indiana University and Purdue University also are members of the association.