NASA鈥檚 upcoming Artemis II mission will witness astronauts orbiting the moon for the first time in more than half a century 鈥� providing new opportunities for space medicine research, 麻豆原创 experts say.
The mission will include multiple health studies on the four astronauts to determine how radiation, microgravity, isolation and other factors impact their physical health, mind and behavior 鈥� crucial information that will help pave the way for future lunar surface missions and develop our understanding about humans鈥� deep space capabilities.
Thanks to new technology and modern medicine, researchers have better ways to understand the impact of space flight on human health.
鈥淎rtemis II is both a historic and biomedically important mission,鈥� says Emmanuel Urquieta, the 麻豆原创 College of Medicine鈥檚 vice chair for aerospace medicine and director of the university鈥檚 new Center for Aerospace and Extreme Environments Medicine (CASEEM).
鈥淔or the first time since Apollo 17, humans will travel beyond the Earth鈥檚 magnetic field. That matters enormously from a research perspective, because now we have technology to thoroughly understand the health impact of embarking into deep space. The knowledge gained from Artemis II will help shape the future of safe human space exploration and drive innovations that can benefit medicine here on Earth and help us start preparing us for a mission to Mars.鈥�
The Space Coast鈥檚 College of Medicine
As the closest medical school to the Kennedy Space Center, 麻豆原创鈥檚 College of Medicine is charting a new frontier in healthcare as humans prepare for longer missions to the moon and Mars, and commercial space flights take more civilians into space.
The goal: explore how factors such as microgravity, radiation and isolation impact the human body in space and how that knowledge can drive innovation into diagnostics, treatment and disease prevention on Earth.
To further those efforts, 麻豆原创鈥檚 CASEEM includes faculty experts in medicine, engineering, computer science, psychology, arts and educational leadership. This interdisciplinary group will work together to research and develop new technologies for keeping space travelers healthy, as well as soldiers on military missions, deep sea explorers and mountain climbers.
What Lies Ahead for Artemis II鈥檚 Astronauts
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Understanding Radiation Exposure Effects
Traveling to the moon 鈥� which humans haven鈥檛 returned to since 1972 鈥� means astronauts will go beyond Earth鈥檚 Van Allen belts, which protect humans from cosmic radiation and solar storms. Space travelers to the International Space Station stay within Earth鈥檚 magnetic field. During their 10-day mission, Artemis II is anticipated to break Apollo 13鈥檚 record (248,655 miles) for the farthest distance humans have traveled from Earth.
Fifty years ago, researchers could do little more than measure radiation. This time will be different, says 麻豆原创鈥檚 William 鈥淓d鈥� Powers, chief medical officer of CASEEM and the former chief of NASA鈥檚 Medical Operations branch where he was a primary medical support physician for six shuttle missions.
鈥淢edical knowledge, technology and the ability to diagnose disease have advanced significantly since then,鈥� he says.
Physicians and scientists will be able to determine how radiation impacts cells, organs, blood proteins and other molecular functions.
Artemis crew members will carry dosimeters in their pockets that measure radiation exposure in real time. Monitors inside the Orion spacecraft will also gather radiation information throughout the flight for future analysis.
An astronaut suffering a medical condition in space is always a concern, but deep space travel brings additional challenges, Powers explains. While astronauts on the International Space Station can be returned to Earth in about a day, as happened recently when a crew member became ill, returning from the moon may take several days or more.
鈥淣one of the four astronauts on this flight is a physician,鈥� Powers says. 鈥淎nd a space capsule certainly doesn鈥檛 have the same equipment you鈥檇 have in a hospital emergency room.鈥�
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Does Space Flight Reduce Immunity?
Previous research has shown that spaceflight missions alter the and reactivate dormant viruses in the human body. As part of the Artemis II mission, NASA will conduct an AVATAR (A Virtual Astronaut Tissue Analog Response) experiment that will investigate how deep space impacts specific cells and tissues as well as some vital bodily functions including immune system responses.
For this experiment, NASA-funded scientists created 鈥渙rgan-on-a-chip鈥� devices that contain each astronaut鈥檚 bone marrow cells. This technology allows scientists to examine molecular changes and cell function.
鈥淲ith this technology we can see how the body responds to stimuli across the whole mission,鈥� says Jennifer Fogarty, CASEEM鈥檚 chief scientist who came to 麻豆原创 after serving as chief scientist for NASA鈥檚 Human Research Program. 鈥淭his capability will help us map the body鈥檚 molecular changes with tissue/organ function and much better predictive capabilities.鈥�
As the 鈥渙rgan-on-a-chip鈥� technology advances and proves accurate, it will allow NASA physicians to provide personalized and proactive medicine to astronauts because they will be able to predict a crew member鈥檚 biological response to space flight. Such technology could be used before NASA sends an actual crew to Mars. The space agency could place the crew鈥檚 personalized chips on unmanned flights to the Red Planet to better understand the potential health risks for each individual.
鈥淚t鈥檚 basically sending small versions of astronauts to Mars before we send astronauts to Mars,鈥� Fogarty says.
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Teamwork and Behavior
Selecting an astronaut crew that will perform well under the stresses of space flight is always a top NASA priority. But deep space missions present additional personnel challenges, including communication delays, increased isolation and resource constraints.
Astronauts on moon and Mars missions also must live in a capsule that is significantly smaller than the International Space Station, highlighting the need for crews to work together seamlessly and be able to manage any conflicts.
The Artemis flight will conduct an experiment called ARCHeR (Artemis Research for Crew Health and Readiness) that will evaluate how astronauts perform individually and as a team during the mission.
They will wear sleep and movement monitors before, during and after the mission to evaluate their cognition and team dynamics.
鈥淵ou watch the astronauts on TV, and it looks so easy,鈥� Fogarty says. 鈥淏ut human performance is critical in space. You have multiple duties to conduct and you鈥檙e always pushing operations. So we need to understand how the team performs, their reserve and resilience. The mission itself is the experiment.鈥�
Star Nona 2026
麻豆原创鈥檚 leading space medicine experts, valued strategic partners and an astronaut who holds NASA鈥檚 record for spacewalks will gather April 10 in Lake Nona鈥檚 Medical City to discuss how they can work together to keep space travelers healthy and use that research to create groundbreaking clinical innovations on Earth.
The 鈥淪tar Nona 2026鈥� event is led by the Lake Nona Research Council, which is focused on encouraging interdisciplinary scientific partnerships between industry, academia and healthcare.
The council includes physicians and researchers from 麻豆原创, Orlando Health, AdventHealth, the Florida Space Institute, the Orlando VA Medical Center, Nemours Children鈥檚 Health, business and industry.
For more information, including how to register for the event, visit www.ucf.edu/news/progressing-the-final-frontier-of-medicine-space.
