Author: Lisa Peacocke

New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study the ways proteins crystallise in…

In a first for New Zealand, research hardware is on its way to the International Space Station. In a first for New Zealand, research hardware is on its way to the International Space Station. Developed by Dr Sarah Kessans from the University of Canterbury in collaboration with teams from Arizona State University and Christchurch companies…

It’s an exciting time for Canterbury University biochemist and senior lecturer Dr Sarah Kessans. Dr Sarah Kessans. Photo: University of Canterbury One of Kessans’ research experiments is set to orbit the Earth later this month aboard the International Space Station. The small scientific experiment, known as a payload, is scheduled to be carried there on…

An interdisciplinary team led by a stellar Canterbury academic is taking one giant leap into a new sector of the global aerospace industry. Dr Sarah Kessans has received $9.87 million to develop research platforms in microgravity specifically related to protien crystallisation. Dr Sarah Kessans, a senior lecturer in Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury…

A research facility prototype developed in Christchurch will soon orbit Earth aboard the International Space Station (ISS) under a partnership between the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and US space company Axiom Space. The facility for studying protein crystal growth in space, developed by Senior Lecturer at the University of Canterbury’s School of…

Dr Kessans with research facility prototype A research facility prototype developed in Christchurch will soon orbit Earth aboard the International Space Station under a partnership between the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and US space company Axiom Space. The facility for studying protein crystal growth in space, developed by Senior Lecturer at the University…

Growing up in the fields and forests of southern Indiana in the USA, Sarah Kessans has always been curious about how the natural world works. Currently teaching students in the School of Product Design as a lecturer at the University of Canterbury (UC) in the Chemical Formulation Design programme, Sarah is also involved in a…

Dr Sarah Kessans, a lecturer in the University of Canterbury’s School of Product Design, is passionate about growing stuff in space, ultimately food, fuel and pharmaceuticals to benefit society. Dr Kessans received $200,000 of 2019 Science for Technological Innovation National Science Challenge (SfTI) Seed Project Funding to develop a space biology laboratory to work towards…

Sarah Kessans started her academic career studying plants; now the self-confessed ‘space geek’ is a synthetic biologist trying to build New Zealand’s role in the global space economy. Her research takes place on board 10cm3 nano-satellites and aims to understand how protein crystals grow in microgravity. This knowledge can then be used here on Earth…