Table 1 Constraints on past and current experimental platforms including small satellites, space stations, rovers, planned lunar habitation, and martian habitation.

CubeSat

0.0187 m³

20–45 W

~20 years

Requires heating unit within constraints

Self-contained

PocketQube

0.000125 m³

Variable

~5 years

Bioculture System

Not stated

140 W

~60 days

37–45 ^°C in main chamber, ambient to 5C in cooling chamber

Self-contained medical grade gas

WetLab-2 (SmartCycler)

235.97 m³

350 W

Extractions <3 h, no lifetime stated

50–95 ^°C

None, reliant on cabin air system

Rodent Habitat Hardware System

0.019 m³

Not stated

~30 day experiments

Ambient temp, no heating module

Compact Science Experiment Module

0.0015 m³

3.2 W

>1 month experiments

Vegetable Production System (Veggie)

0.48 m³ growth area

Not stated

>12 day experiments, can replace crops

Advanced Plant Habitat (APH)

889.44 m³ growth area

~1 year

18–30 ^°C

Self-contained gas supply

Spectrum

10 × 12.7 cm internal area

12 day experiments

18–37 ^°C

None, reliant on cabin air comp

BRIC-60

11.03 m³

Unpowered

>12 day experiments

Ambient temp, no heating module

60 M variant can draw from an external gas tank

BRIC-100

38.78 m³

Self-contained gas canister of designated composition

BRIC-100VC

16.33 m³

4.5 months

KSC Fixation Tubes (KFTs)

0.2387 m³

67 days

miniPCR

0.00066 m³

65 W

~2 year

<120 ^°C

Airtight, reliant on cabin air comp

Group Activation Pack-Fluid Processing Apparatus (GAP-FPA)

Eight 6.5 cm³ test tubes

Unpowered for manual

Not stated

4–37 ^°C

Multi-use Variable-g Platform (MVP)

Twelve 800 cm³ modules

Not stated

14–40 ^°C

MinION

0.0796 m³

5 W

~1 year

Ambient temp, no heating module

Perseverance (MOXIE)

0.017 m³

300 W

~2 years

800 ^°C operational −60 ^°C ambient

CO₂ input CH₄ output

Gateway (HALO)

>125 m³ planned internal volume

~60 kW

>2 years

~18 ^°C

Pressurized cabin air

Mars Hab (6 Crew)

300 m³

~100 kW

600 day nominal, 619 day maximum

~18 ^°C

Pressurized cabin air