MicroPET is an autonomous payload for enzymatic reactions and microbial cultivation with fully programmable serial passaging and sample preservation. The is a collaboration between MIT Media Lab Space Exploration Initiative, NREL, Weill Cornell Medicine, Harvard Medical School, and Seed Health to study the biological upcycling of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in a two-step system involving enzymatic degradation and microbial upcycling.
The payload system was launched to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX CRS-26 on November 26th, 2022.