At NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Harrington brings curation, science, engineering and planetary protection into the design and operation of laboratories and sample-handling systems. She works with curators on operational practices and laboratory specifications intended to support future lunar missions, NASA reported on May 20, 2025. [S1]
The work has practical tools behind it. NASA says Harrington helped develop a clean closure system to reduce contamination during handling and ultraclean isolation cabinets with three inert chambers. The agency says the systems are standard equipment used to preserve samples from its OSIRIS-REx mission and Japan’s Hayabusa2 mission; they also supported processing of sensitive Apollo samples. [S1]
Harrington also leads advanced curation medical geology work. Her team is developing exposure techniques that use significantly less sample material to assess potential health risks, and studying samples and analogues to identify possible sources of inflammation. NASA says the findings can help guide protective-equipment decisions for sample processors and curators and may eventually support astronaut safety. [S1]
Source documents
- Andrea Harrington’s Vision Paves the Way for Lunar Missionshttps://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/johnson/andrea-harringtons-vision-paves-the-way-for-artemis-missions/