Isothermal Dendritic Growth Experiment (IDGE) Is the First United States Microgravity Experiment Controlled From the Principal Investigator's University

The scientific objective of the Isothermal Dendritic Growth Experiment (IDGE) is to test fundamental assumptions about dendritic solidification of molten materials. IDGE is a microgravity materials science experiment using apparatus that was designed, built, tested, and operated by people from the NASA Lewis Research Center. The IDGE experiment was conceived by the principal investigator, Professor Martin E. Glicksman from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. This experiment was a team effort of civil servants from the NASA Lewis Research Center, contractors from Aerospace Design & Fabrication, Inc. (ADF), and personnel at Rensselaer.