Space Tango

Recognized under Tier 4 — Life Support Systems, Space Tango is a Lexington, Kentucky-based company that has built automated hardware for cell culture and biomaterial production aboard the ISS, with flight heritage spanning more than 270 investigations and over 50 ground control studies through its TangoLab facility. Its Mambo platform (Microgravity-based Automated Manufacturing and Bioprocessing Outpost) is the next generation of that architecture, providing power, data, heat rejection, and modular tray interfaces so multiple researchers can run automated bioprocessing experiments simultaneously without constant crew intervention. The company has also outlined plans for ST-42, an autonomous free-flying orbital platform intended to scale biomanufacturing beyond the ISS. Autonomous, low-crew-touch bioprocessing is directly relevant to Moon and Mars missions, where crew time is scarce and any biological production — from pharmaceuticals to tissue research supporting countermeasures — must run reliably with minimal hands-on oversight.