The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) announced this week that it had awarded $2.2 million for three new health studies to be conducted on the International Space Station.
The studies selected are specific to the effects of space flight on the human body and were selected from NASA’s 2017 Human Exploration Research Opportunities program.
The funded studies are:
- Dr. Richard Hughson, University of Waterloo – Long-term health consequences of cardiovascular changes caused by space flight. Up to $881,020 over six years.
- Dr. Stephen Boyd, University of Calgary – Using 3D high-resolution imaging to determine how space flight changes bone structure and strength. Up to $870,618 over six years.
- Dr. Santiago Costantino and Dr. Mark Lesk, Université de Montréal and the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital – Rigidity of astronauts’ eyes as a risk factor for vision changes experienced during space flight. Up to $478,204 over five years. This study will be conducted with astronauts during six-month missions.
According to the CSA the research of Dr. Hughson and Dr. Boyd is a first “for Canadian science on board the International Space Station” and they “will have the unique opportunity to study astronauts taking part in year-long missions – twice the length of standard stays aboard the orbiting laboratory.”