AMES, Iowa – NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, along with leaders from other federal agencies, will visit Iowa State University and Ames National Laboratory on Tuesday, Sept. 8.

During the visit, Isaacman and other federal leaders will meet with campus leadership, tour Ames National Laboratory and participate in a town hall with students focused on space exploration and inspiring the next generation of American scientists, engineers, innovators and explorers.

The campus community and media are invited to attend the student town hall at 1 p.m. in the Howe Hall Atrium. Those who cannot attend in person can watch via livestream.

A brief media availability will follow at 1:45 p.m. 

Iowa State University has a long history of supporting NASA’s mission through research, education, and workforce development.

The university leads the Iowa Space Grant Consortium, collaborating with 25 partners across Iowa to support STEM research, education and outreach. From the Mission Moon camp for kids, to LAUNCH-SPACE summer undergraduate internships, to Astro Camp professional development for teachers, the Iowa Space Grant Consortium sparks interest in NASA’s mission and helps prepare the next generation of explorers and innovators.

Additionally, aerospace engineering is the second-largest major in the College of Engineering and the third-largest major at Iowa State. The program is also one of the nation's largest. Iowa State is consistently in the top 10 nationwide for total bachelor’s degrees awarded in aerospace engineering.

Iowa State has nearly 30 active NASA research projects with funding totaling more than $14 million. The research ranges from identifying crop stress to manufacturing electronics to essential elements and more. Iowa State is a collaborator on another nine NASA projects in partnership with the University of Illinois-Chicago, New Mexico State University and the University of Notre Dame as well as several industry partners. 

Among the NASA-supported research underway at Iowa State:

Researchers used two satellite-based radiation sensors to detect crop stress in the Corn Belt. The research, which wraps this fall, showed data from those satellites can identify crop stress in the Midwest, but the data is more useful in regions with frequent clear skies. The work also suggested satellite-based moisture monitoring could help local decision-makers determine when to enact burn bans to prevent wildfires. 

Four students were supported by the grant, including two graduate students and summer research positions for two undergraduates.

Background: News Service March 2023 research story  

Researchers are building upon previous work that tested nanoink and printing technologies on the "roller coaster" of NASA microgravity flights. They demonstrated that electronic circuits can be printed in zero gravity. 

Now, they want to enable on-demand manufacturing of next-generation electronics in space using 2D materials. The project is just getting underway and will provide substantial hands-on research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in advanced materials, electronics and manufacturing.  

Background: News Service November 2024 research story 

Iowa State researcher Khaled Kamal is mapping how microgravity conditions during spaceflight accelerate musculoskeletal decline in the human body, work that could influence NASA’s long‑duration missions and help develop emerging therapies for muscular dystrophy, age-related sarcopenia, immobilization due to injury or long hospital stays, and even health conditions related to sedentary lifestyles here on Earth. 

Background: News Service June 2026 research story 

As NASA advances human space exploration through Artemis and the Human Path to Mars, astronaut health in microgravity remains a challenge. One concern is Spaceflight-Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS), which causes vision problems during long missions. 

The causes of SANS are still unclear, but recent research points to a disruption in the fluid dynamics in the optic nerve head to be a contributing factor. 

Iowa State researchers are creating iSANS, a new AI-powered fluid dynamics modeling platform that uses clinical data from Earth-based conditions similar to SANS – like papilledema and head-down-tilt bed rest – to better understand and predict SANS risk. 

iSANS will build a medical database of SANS-like cases, train AI to identify high-risk anatomical features and simulate fluid dynamics in the optic nerve head to explore potential causes, such as cerebrospinal fluid flow and axonal flow stasis. 

An Iowa State-led team of crop modeling experts is collaborating with the Iowa Corn Growers Association and NASA to integrate a wide range of observations, including data from satellites and in-field sensors, into A Virtual Agricultural Innovations Laboratory. 

AVAIL will help farmers evaluate the projected impacts of alternative strategies and systems.