03/15/2026
Happy E-FIELD Flames anniversary!
Eight years ago, on Pi Day 2018, the E-FIELD Flames experiment initiated on the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Advanced Combustion via Microgravity Experiments. What began as a journey to study flames in microgravity has become a milestone in space combustion science. 🔥🚀
From Earth, the experiment was operated in real time, with LFA Research Group at UC Irvine, coordinating live with the operations team at NASA Glenn Research Center. Through remote commands, the team conducted experiments hundreds of kilometers above Earth.
E-FIELD Flames investigates how electric fields interact with laminar diffusion flames when buoyancy is removed. By extending the reach of laboratory science into space, this research explores how electric fields could one day help control combustion across different gravity environments—from spacecraft to future habitats on the Moon and Mars.
Eight years later, E-FIELD Flames continues to remind us that even a small flame can illuminate big questions about energy, physics, and exploration.
