INTERNATIONAL SPACE MEDICINE SUMMIT III EXECUTIVE SUMMARY JAMES A. BAKER III INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY RICE UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL SPACE MEDICINE SUMMIT III May 14–17, 2009 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FEBRUARY 2010 International Space Medicine Summit III THIS SUMMARY WAS WRITTEN BY PARTICIPANTS OF A JOINT CONFERENCE ORGANIZED BY THE JAMES A. BAKER III INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY AND BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE. THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS SUMMARY ARE THOSE OF THE INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPANT(S) AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT THE VIEWS OF THE JAMES A. BAKER III INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY OR BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE. © 2010 BY THE JAMES A. BAKER III INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY OF RICE UNIVERSITY THIS MATERIAL MAY BE QUOTED OR REPRODUCED WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION, PROVIDED APPROPRIATE CREDIT IS GIVEN TO THE JAMES A. BAKER III INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY. 2 International Space Medicine Summit III Organizing Partners James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, Rice University The mission of the Baker Institute is to help bridge the gap between the theory and practice of public policy by drawing together experts from academia, government, media, business, and nongovernmental organizations. By involving policymakers and scholars, as well as students (tomorrow’s policymakers and scholars), the institute seeks to improve the debate on selected public policy issues and to make a difference in the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of public policy, both domestic and international. The Baker Institute is an integral part of Rice University, one of the nation’s most distinguished institutions of higher education. The efforts of Baker Institute fellows and affiliated Rice faculty focus on several ongoing research projects, details of which can be found on the institute’s Web site, http://bakerinstitute.org. Baylor College of Medicine Baylor College of Medicine is committed to being a national leader in advancing human health through the integration of patient care, research, education, and community service. The college pursues this mission by promoting patient care of the highest standard, advancing basic and clinical biomedical research, sustaining educational excellence, and fostering public awareness of health and the prevention of disease. Since its founding in 1900, Baylor has grown into an internationally respected medical and research institution. Baylor offers patient care services through several of its Texas Medical Center affiliate hospitals and clinics, with more than 152,000 inpatient admissions and 2.2 million outpatient visits annually. The college has more than 70 research and patient-care centers and units. More information can be found on the school’s Web site at http://www.bcm.edu. 3 International Space Medicine Summit III Acknowledgments We are grateful to the Friedkin Family, the Alkek and Williams Foundation, and the Allbritton- Alford Trust for their generous support of the International Space Medicine Summit. Because of their support, the International Space Medicine Summit was successful and has provided a foundation for future collaborations. 4 International Space Medicine Summit III Table of Contents Preface Introduction Day One: May 15, 2009 Welcome, Introductions, Opening Remarks NASA Celebrates 10th anniversary of International Space Station Panel 1 — ISS Utilization: Lessons Learned and Achievements Luncheon: Overview of Chinese Space Program — Past, Present, Future Panel II — Research Opportunities for Countermeasure Development Panel III — Analog Environments: Human Performance Reception and Dinner — Keynote Address Day Two: May 16, 2009 Mars 500 to Exploration Novel Technology Presentations Panel IV — Commercial and Industrial Opportunities Luncheon: NASA Celebrates 40th Anniversary of Apollo 10 — Preparation for Lunar Landing Panel V — Education Needs and Career Opportunities Reception and Dinner — Space Medicine: Principles and Practice Day Three: May 17, 2009 Discussion Groups Group A: Cooperative Research Opportunities during Space Station and Lunar Missions Group B: Suggestions for Analog/Ground-based Collaborative Research Group C: Education Needs and Career Opportunities Appendix A: Program Appendix B: List of participants Appendix C: Discussion groups Appendix D: Summary of ISMS III findings, unsolved problems, recommendations 5 International Space Medicine Summit III Preface The first International Space Medicine Summit was held in 2007 with the intent of bringing together leading physicians, space biomedical scientists and researchers, engineers, and astronauts and cosmonauts from the world’s space-faring nations. High-level discussions focused on the research needed to prevent and/or mitigate the medical and biomedical challenges associated with long-duration space flight, as well as the issues that affect the nations’ capabilities to accomplish that research. The 2007 and 2008 conferences were quite successful in attempting to achieve these goals, providing a forum that encouraged open discussion of the issues and challenges faced by the various researchers and spacefarers. The first two summits and the 2009 summit, which is the focus of this report, were co-sponsored by The James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy and Baylor College of Medicine. The intent of the third summit, International Space Medicine Summit 2009, was similar to the previous two meetings, with an additional focus on lessons to be learned from the analog environments of Devon Island, the Antarctic, and NASA’s Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO). Scientists wanted information that could help advance successful human space exploration and protect the health and well-being of the flight crews before, during, and after long-duration missions in space. A secondary objective was to enhance life on Earth by applying the resultant advances in human knowledge and technology acquired through living and working in space. A third objective was to discuss how the space program, and specifically space medicine, could contribute to inspiring young students to pursue careers in science, medicine, and engineering. The participating organizations included the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD), the China Astronaut Research and Training Center (CARTC), The Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the Henry Ford Hospital System (HFHS), the Russian Institute for Biomedical Problems (IBMP), the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Moscow State University, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI), the Russian 6 International Space Medicine Summit III Academy of Sciences National Research Centre, and the Russian Federal Space Agency (ROSCOSMOS). DAY 1: MAY 15, 2009 Welcome, Introduction, and Opening Remarks The 2009 International Space Medicine Summit (ISMS), co-sponsored by Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine, convened Friday, May 15, 2009, at 8:30 a.m. at Rice University’s James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy on the Rice University campus. (See Appendices A, B, C, and D for the program, list of participants, discussion groups, and recommendations, observations, unsolved problems, commentaries, and opportunities respectively.) The Honorable Edward P. Djerejian, founding director of the Baker Institute, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel, former U.S. Ambassador to the Syrian Arab Republic, and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, welcomed the participants to the third International Space Medicine Summit, and made the following opening remarks. They are provided here as presented: “I would like to welcome you all to the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and to Rice University, for the International Space Medicine Summit—an event that we are truly proud to co-sponsor with the Baylor College of Medicine. For many of you, this is your third International Space Medicine Summit, and we are delighted to have you back. I particularly want to welcome our international participants who have come a long way to be with us, and especially our new attendees from China. We are very pleased to have you with us, and we hope that this will be the first of many future visits to the Baker Institute. The Summit has proven to be a forum very much in keeping with the goals of this institute—an event committed to intellectual excellence that bridges the divide between the world of action and ideas, and it accomplishes this on an international scale. Look around, and you will see leading physicians, space biomedical scientists, engineers, researchers, 7 International Space Medicine Summit III astronauts, and cosmonauts from all over the world. We have gathered to discuss, freely and openly, the medical and biomedical challenges of long-duration space flights—as well as the issues facing our ongoing and future joint activities in space. I am also pleased to see that this year’s summit addresses the education of our young people—and the importance of developing a new generation of engineers and scientists that will take us to new horizons. This past November, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the International Space Station, the largest spacecraft ever built. The orbital assembly of the space station began with the launch from Kazakhstan of its first component, Zarya, on November 20, 1998. A few weeks later, the space shuttle Endeavour carried aloft the