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Human Research and Health Maintenance

Description:

The NASA Human Research Program (HRP) drives advances in scientific and technological research to enable human space exploration. It is a human-focused Program dedicated to providing solutions and mitigation strategies beyond low-earth orbit by reducing the risks to human health & performance through focused translational, applied and operational research. HRP's primary deliverables include:

·       Human health, performance, and habitability standards

·       Countermeasures and other risk mitigation solutions

·       Advanced habitability and medical support technologies

Recently, HRP has developed a strategy to deliver critical components for an evolvable Crew Health and Performance System by 2032. This will be central to how HRP characterizes spaceflight risks and produces mitigation strategies that enable optimal crew health and performance during exploration missions. HRP will demonstrate and mature this system in ground analogs, in LEO, and on and around the moon to support a 2039 Mars mission. The Human Research Roadmap (https://humanresearchroadmap.nasa.gov) is a web-based version of an HRP Integrated Research Plan (IRP) that allows users to search HRP risks, gaps, and tasks.

The HRP is organized into several research Elements:

·       Human Health Countermeasures

·       Human Factors and Behavioral Performance

·       Exploration Medical Capability

·       Space Radiation

Each of the HRP Elements addresses a subset of the risks. A fifth Element, Research Operations, and Integration (ROI) is responsible for the implementation of the research on various space and ground analog platforms. Furthermore, HRP has invested in a set of cross-risk initiatives, including -omics research, systems biology, and precision health. HRP subtopics are aligned with Element research and solicit technologies identified in their respective strategic plans.      

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