NASA loves LEED too.

Unsurprisingly, NASA has built the federal government's most sustainable building: an ultra-green experimental building, a space station on Earth, dubbed "Sustainability Base" in Moffett, California.

It's not surprising that forward-looking NASA recently set out to build the federal government's most sustainable building. What is surprising, however, is that this ultra-green experimental building, dubbed the Sustainability Base, will open its doors in May of this year—just two years after construction began.

NASA's had a number of requirements for its $20.6 million, Ames Research Center-based building: a healthy working environment, excellent air quality and natural light, low energy use, intelligent controls, a flexible building system, the integration of NASA's emerging technology, and the most challenging requirement of all—LEED Platinum status as a baseline for sustainability.