How to Send an Experiment to the ISS: Routes, Steps, Hardware and Costs

To send an experiment to the International Space Station, you need a sponsor that allocates station resources and a partner that builds or integrates your hardware. In the US the main routes are NASA research announcements and the ISS National Laboratory, which today works mostly through paid Commercial Service Providers. In Europe, ESA research announcements and commercial services such as ICE Cubes are the entry points; in Japan, JAXA's Kibo module.

This guide explains each route, the steps from idea to orbit, the hardware you can use, how samples come back and what is publicly known about cost. It relies on NASA, the ISS National Lab, ESA, JAXA and the service providers' own pages. To plan the transport side, see cargo transport on Carrier Space and our comparison of space station cargo vehicles.

The routes to the ISS

NASA research announcements

NASA funds station research through NASA Research Announcements. Its technology demonstration page lists an open solicitation, "Research Opportunities for International Space Station Utilization" (NNJ13ZBG001N), with a closing date of 30 September 2030. For selected investigations NASA states that it covers launch, standard integration, crew time, power, data, thermal and, if needed, hardware return. NASA also notes that no sponsored researcher needs to fund launch costs or station lab facilities.

ISS National Laboratory

Congress designated the US segment of the ISS a National Laboratory in 2005. It is managed by CASIS and, according to NASA, is responsible for 50 % of NASA's resources aboard the station, open to commercial, academic and government users.

The way in has changed. The ISS National Lab now names two pathways: the Commercial Service Provider pathway and solicitations, and states that solicitations for proposals are unlikely to be issued in the future. On the Commercial Service Provider pathway you contact a provider directly, agree terms and then complete a Resource Request Form together. According to the ISS National Lab, this can cut the time to approval from six or more months to as little as two weeks. It gives the same access to upmass and crew time, but no funding: the applicant pays its own project costs and the provider.

ESA research announcements

ESA's research announcements are the official access route for institutional users to facilities managed by its human and robotic exploration directorate. They run as continuously open announcements or time-bound announcements of opportunity. As of October 2026, ESA lists an announcement of opportunity for an Orbital High-Throughput Screener with a deadline of 3 November 2026.

JAXA Kibo

Japan's Kibo module offers two experiment spaces: the pressurized module and the Exposed Facility outside the station, where payloads sit in standardised boxes. Kibo has been in use since August 2008. JAXA's English pages do not publish a step-by-step application process or prices.

Commercial service providers

The ISS National Lab lists around 30 implementation partners that help design, build and integrate payloads, among them Aegis Aerospace, Airbus, Axiom Space, BioServe, ICE Cubes, Nanoracks, Redwire, Sierra Space and Space Tango. According to the ISS National Lab, these partners usually provide their own hardware and facilities.

Step by step: from idea to orbit

Define the science or technology goal. Decide why microgravity or exposure to space matters and which measurements you need. NASA's Researcher's Guide series covers 17 disciplines.
Choose the route and sponsor. A NASA announcement, an ESA call or the Commercial Service Provider pathway. NASA stresses that every payload needs both a sponsor and funding.
Pick an implementation partner and hardware. The partner adapts your experiment to an existing facility, such as a CubeLab, NanoLab or ICE Cube.
Get resources allocated. Through a NASA selection or the ISS National Lab Resource Request Form.
Integration. NASA assigns a Payload Integration Manager as your main contact; the payload is added to the Integrated Payload List and a Payload Integration Agreement is signed.
Launch, operation and return. The payload flies on a cargo mission, is operated by the crew or remotely and, if needed, returns on Dragon.

No official source gives a general duration from proposal to launch. ESA described ICE Cubes in 2018 as going from idea to reality in about a year, with service launches typically three times a year. For the external Bartolomeo platform, ESA wrote in 2018 that one to two years pass between contract and go for flight. These are provider statements from 2018, not guarantees.

Hardware you can fly

ICE Cubes (Columbus module): experiments built around 10 cm cubes (1U), with larger custom formats. The ESA flight segment overview mentions room for up to 20 experiment cubes.
Space Tango CubeLabs: modular, scalable lab units, which the company says now scale beyond 9U, with a cold flask down to 4 °C.
Nanoracks NanoLabs: 10 x 10 x 10 cm units, also in 2U and 4U, powered over USB; Nanoracks charges by size.
Nanoracks Bishop Airlock: the first permanent commercial addition to the ISS, installed in 2020. It holds up to 144U of payloads or objects up to 112 x 112 x 127 cm and 322 kg, and according to NASA has five times the capacity of the Japanese airlock.
Bartolomeo (Airbus, outside Columbus): 11 external slots; payloads from 5 kg in a shared slot up to 450 kg for a full slot. Installation was completed in March 2022.
MISSE Flight Facility (Aegis Aerospace): external exposure of materials, sponsored by the ISS National Lab, with missions about every six months according to NASA.
Kibo Exposed Facility (JAXA): external standard payloads; Kibo's airlock and robotic arm also deploy small satellites.
Other partners: BioServe has had hardware on the ISS continuously since 2002; Redwire operates facilities such as ADSEP, the BioFabrication Facility and the Additive Manufacturing Facility.

Getting samples back

Return is only possible on SpaceX Cargo Dragon today, which splashes down off California. NASA reports that after one mission, critical science was in researchers' hands less than six hours after splashdown, flown by helicopter to Kennedy's processing facility. The ISS National Lab notes that the timing of sample return is the applicant's preference. Read more in downmass explained.

What does it cost?

Few prices are public:

NASA-sponsored research: NASA covers launch, standard integration, crew time and station resources for selected investigations.
ICE Cubes: ESA reported in 2018 a starting price of 50,000 euros for a 1 kg experiment with an end-to-end service of four months, with cheaper rates for educational organisations.
ISS National Lab programmes: occasional funded programmes, for example up to 500,000 US dollars each for six startups in the 2026 Orbital Edge Accelerator, which closed on 4 June 2026.
Space Tango, Nanoracks, Redwire, Bartolomeo: no published prices.

Commercial and marketing use of station resources requires a reimbursable space act agreement or another arrangement with NASA.

Plan for the end of the ISS

NASA has committed to operate the station through 2030 and then deorbit it with a SpaceX-built US Deorbit Vehicle. Russia has committed to operations through at least 2028. NASA plans to move to commercial stations in low Earth orbit; Axiom Space, Blue Origin with Orbital Reef and Starlab are developing them. If your research runs over several years, ask your partner how it will continue after the ISS. See commercial space stations after the ISS.

FAQ

Can anyone send an experiment to the ISS?

Yes, companies, universities and agencies can, but they need a sponsor and usually an implementation partner. Through the ISS National Lab's Commercial Service Provider pathway, the applicant pays the provider and its own costs.

How long does it take to get an experiment on the ISS?

There is no official general figure. The ISS National Lab says its provider pathway can cut approval to as little as two weeks. ESA described ICE Cubes in 2018 as taking about a year from idea to flight.

How much does it cost to send an experiment to the ISS?

For NASA-selected research, NASA covers launch and station resources. Commercially, ESA reported a 2018 starting price of 50,000 euros for a 1 kg ICE Cubes experiment. Most providers do not publish prices.

Does the ISS National Lab still fund research?

Its main route today is the Commercial Service Provider pathway, which provides station resources but no funding. The ISS National Lab says solicitations are unlikely in the future; occasional funded programmes still exist.

How do experiments come back from the ISS?

On SpaceX Cargo Dragon, which splashes down off California. NASA has delivered samples to researchers less than six hours after splashdown.

What happens to ISS research after 2030?

NASA plans to retire the ISS after 2030 and use commercial stations. Research providers will need to move to those platforms.

Sources

Cover image: NASA astronaut Jessica Meir processes blood platelet samples inside the Kibo module's Life Science Glovebox, 29 May 2026. Credit: NASA/Jack Hathaway