Massachusetts Governor Baker and Astronauts Coleman, Nyberg and Williams All Slated to Present at ISS R&D

BOSTON, July 2, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The International Space Station Research and Development Conference (ISS R&D) today announced that The Honorable Charlie Baker, Governor of Massachusetts, along with NASA astronauts Cady Coleman, Karen Nyberg and Sunita Williams have all been confirmed as speakers for its 4th annual meeting at the Boston Marriott Copley Square in Boston, MA, July 7-9, 2015. The ISS R&D Conference was created to connect commercial and academic communities involved in new innovations, breakthroughs, and discoveries onboard humankind's unique orbiting laboratory. This event is held in coordination with the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), the American Astronautical Society (AAS), and NASA.

Governor Baker, will join leaders from NASA, CASIS and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) to present funding awards of $500,000 to one or more MA life science companies to conduct cutting edge research onboard the International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory. Additionally through this partnership, a grant of $50,000 to two MA middle schools to fly STEM projects to space will be awarded. Both competitions will allow the winners to take advantage of a truly unique microgravity research platform.

"I am very pleased that the ISS R&D conference has chosen Boston," said Governor Baker. "Our administration welcomes NASA, CASIS and all participants to Massachusetts to learn more about the exciting developments that occur when the best researchers in the country have access to an extraordinary discovery platform."

Active NASA astronauts Cady Coleman, Karen Nyberg and Sunita Williams will join the conference and participate in a variety of sessions. Cady Coleman, who has logged over 180 days in space, will keynote the new user workshop on Monday, July 6^th and support a number of education and STEM panels.  Karen Nyberg, who has been a part of two missions to the ISS and Sunita Williams, a veteran astronaut who has logged over 320 days in space, will give a number of talks on the importance of ISS research and leveraging the station as an innovative learning platform.

"We thank Governor Baker for his willingness to be part of a special ceremony rewarding Massachusetts-based life science companies through the Galactic Grant Competition," said CASIS President and Executive Director Gregory H. Johnson. "Massachusetts has been a leader in leveraging the ISS National Laboratory as a platform for novel research and continues to push the boundaries of research and innovation."

Registration for the 2015 conference is open. To learn more about ISS R&D 2015, including how to register, please visit: http://www.issconference.org

*For those unable to attend in person, portions of ISS R&D will be live-streamed. The schedule for live-streamed events will be distributed Monday, July 6, 2015.

Media contact:
CASIS
Patrick O'Neill
(321) 480-1054
[email protected]

SOURCE Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS)