Medicine in Space: What Microgravity Can Tell Us about Human Health

Microgravity, or very weak gravity, on the International Space Station (ISS) is what lets astronauts glide and somersault around effortlessly as they orbit Earth.

It is also a useful environment for gaining insights into human health, both in terms of the impacts of long-duration spaceflight and new perspectives on diseases that afflict people on our planet.

Space-based biomedical research was one of the key topics discussed last week at the ISS R&D Conference in Atlanta.

Researchers highlighted some of the current work on the Space Station, as well as further studies NASA and the ISS National Laboratory hope to do while seeking to commercialize low-Earth orbit.

They also aim to use the ISS as a stepping-stone to landing back on the Moon and eventually Mars.

As a physician certified in both internal and aerospace medicine, astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor has a keen interest in this work.

She helped conduct several biomedical experiments as a flight engineer onboard the ISS for 197 days during Expeditions 56 and 57 in 2018,

an experience she described to the audience at the conference. 

Scientific American sat down with Auñón-Chancellor to discuss the research she conducted and her own experiences with the impacts microgravity has on the human body.

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