Hi, I’m Connor Zakin. This summer, I worked with the Tribology Laboratory at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering to help advance the design of a custom tribometer for testing aerospace-grade materials under conditions relevant to space applications. Tribology—the study of friction, wear, and lubrication—is crucial in space environments where traditional liquid lubricants fail due to vacuum and extreme temperatures. Instead, solid lubricants like MoS₂ (molybdenum disulfide) are used in components such as bearings and hinges. Our project focused on upgrading a pre-existing temperature-controlled tribometer to support more adaptable experimental configurations, such as ball-on-flat contact to simulate real-world bearing geometries under low load conditions (1–10 N). These modifications improve usability within a nitrogen-filled glove box, allowing for single-handed operation and part replacement. We designed and calibrated a new load head assembly using cantilever springs and dual load cells to measure normal and frictional forces. Initial testing on an MoS₂-coated sample produced a low coefficient of friction (0.00385), validating the functionality of our prototype. Future work includes finalizing calibration, assembling all six load heads, and conducting systematic material tests for aerospace applications.