ISS Microbial Observatory: Pathogen and Bacteria Community Data

8 habitable locations on the International Space Station were sampled for microbial analysis. The microbial composition was measured using shotgun metagenomic sequencing and processed with the Livermore Metagenomics Analysis Toolkit. This dataset was created by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Compare microbial community structures based on sampling location within the ISS.
• Analyze the interplay between environmental and crew-associated microbes based on the study's stated focus.
• Profile potential pathogenic virus, bacteria, and fungi populations in a space habitat.
• Benchmark metagenomic analysis pipelines using data processed with a specific toolkit (LMAT).

Strengths

• Data originates from the authoritative source, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
• Samples were collected from 8 distinct locations, suggesting spatial diversity.
• Analysis used shotgun metagenomic sequencing, a high-resolution method for microbial community profiling.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and dataset size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Environmental samples collected from the International Space Station and analyzed via shotgun metagenomic sequencing.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 19:47:52.195474; freshness should be verified.

Geography

International Space Station