In In the last manned flight of the space shuttle Atlantis, NASA had sent two Android-powered Nexus S smartphones into space. The two smartphones were used to test and investigate how humans and robots can coexist in space more efficiently.
In the mission, the phones were used to control SPHERES (Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites), which have their own power, computing, propulsion and navigation systems. Originally developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, these small robotic satellites are generally used to do things like record video and capture sensor data. These are errands that once required astronauts.
The satellites called SPHERES have been in the International Space Station since 2006, so they obviously predate Android OS. However, the satellites have an external expansion port through which NASA can add additional sensors and other capabilities.
This is where the Nexus S smartphones come in; NASA is using them to give the SPHEREs more powers. The SPHEREs take advantage of Nexuss CPU to power its brains, and the phones sensors allow it to monitor more external data.
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