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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Researchers Kelly Gilkey, Cy Peverill, Daniel Phan, Chase Haddix, and Ariel Tokarz test portable, handheld X-ray systems for use during future long-duration space missions at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland on Friday, March 21, 2025. Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna As NASA plans future human exploration missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond, new and unique challenges emerge — like communication delays and limited return-to-Earth options — so enhanced medical care capabilities are critical. Crews will need non-invasive imaging technology to diagnose medical conditions, like broken bones or dental injuries.
Scientists at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland are testing portable, handheld X-ray systems for use during future extended space missions. Having portable X-ray capabilities aboard spacecraft would allow astronauts to immediately assess and treat potential injuries or identify equipment issues without having to disassemble the gear.
“Technological innovations like that of the mini-X-ray will help keep our astronauts healthy as we endeavor farther into space than ever before,” said acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy. “Future missions to the Moon and Mars will be safer due to the research of our scientists at NASA Glenn.”
NASA reviewed more than 200 commercial systems — analyzing size, weight, image quality, ease-of-use, cost, and safety — and selected three systems for further testing: MinXray, Remedi, and Fujifilm.
“We’re working to provide evidence on why a mini-X-ray system should be included in future space exploration,” said Dr. Chase Haddix, a senior biomedical engineering research contractor working for Universities Space Research Association at NASA Glenn. “These X-rays could be used to detect both clinical and non-clinical diagnostics, meaning they can check an astronaut’s body or identify the location of a tear in an astronaut suit.”
Researchers capture X-ray images of a shape memory alloy rover tire at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland on Friday, March 21, 2025. Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna NASA Glenn is collaborating with other centers, including NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, and radiography experts at University Hospitals and Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland.
“We’re fortunate to have enthusiastic medical and radiography experts right here in our community,” said Dr. Cy Peverill, project task lead at NASA Glenn. “Their knowledge and experience are invaluable as we work to test medical technologies that could significantly improve management of astronaut health on future missions to the Moon or Mars.”
Cuyahoga Community College contributed anatomical phantoms, which are lifelike models of the human body, in its radiography laboratory on the Western Campus and dental hygiene clinical facility at the Metropolitan Campus. Faculty and students consulted with NASA researchers on essential imaging principles, including patient positioning, image acquisition, and image quality.
University Hospitals is partnering with NASA Glenn on a medical study with real patients to compare the performance of the X-ray systems against hospital-grade equipment, focusing on usability, image clarity, and diagnostic accuracy.
“Astronauts live and work in small quarters, much smaller spaces than in a hospital,” Haddix said. “The system must be easy to use since astronauts may not be experienced in radiography. The data from these tests will guide the selection of the most suitable system for future missions.”
Researchers capture X-ray images of an astronaut spacesuit at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland on Friday, March 21, 2025. Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna Using portable X-rays to improve health care in inaccessible areas is not new, with systems deployed to diagnose medical issues in places such as base camps in Nepal and remote villages in South Africa. NASA researchers theorize that if these systems are successful in high elevations and extreme temperatures on Earth, perhaps they are durable enough for space missions.
Glenn researchers will continue to collect data from all collaborators, including from an X-ray system sourced by SpaceX that launched in April during the Fram2 mission. The crew captured the first human X-ray images in space during their four-day mission to low Earth orbit. NASA plans to select a device near the end of 2025 and will test the chosen system aboard the International Space Station in 2026 or early 2027.
The Mars Campaign Office at NASA Headquarters in Washington and the agency’s Human Research Program at NASA Johnson fund this work as both organizations focus on pursuing technologies and methods to support safe, productive human space travel.
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By European Space Agency
The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has revealed new details in the core of the Butterfly Nebula, NGC 6302. From the dense, dusty torus that surrounds the star hidden at the centre of the nebula to its outflowing jets, the Webb observations reveal many new discoveries that paint a never-before-seen portrait of a dynamic and structured planetary nebula.
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By NASA
While it may sound like the opening to a punchline, this scientific question was at the heart of a research experiment that orbited the Moon aboard Artemis I.NASA astronaut and Expedition 65 Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei caring for chili peppers aboard the International Space Station. NASA New research uncovers the connection between space agriculture and astronaut health. A study published in npj Microgravity shows how analyzing diverse datasets together can reveal insights that might otherwise be missed — in this case, linking space-grown food quality to astronaut nutrition and gut health.
The paper reviewed previous studies of plants grown aboard the International Space Station. The authors found that some edible plants grown in low Earth orbit have lower concentrations of essential nutrients, like calcium and magnesium, than those grown on Earth.
The reduced levels of these nutrients could make crops not as effective in mitigating the bone loss and reduced immune function that astronauts encounter in space.
Working Groups Uncover Hidden Health Connections
Three Analysis Working Groups from NASA’s Open Science Data Repository collaborated to make this paper possible. These discipline-specific groups typically work independently, but this project sparked conversations among researchers with different specialties.
Researchers combined plant data, crop nutrition profiles, gut studies, and astronaut blood biomarkers — a data integration effort of the Biological and Physical Sciences Division open science model. The work also draws on data from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency).
For NASA, these findings offer new insights into how to feed and support astronauts in space, particularly on long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars.
Seeks Ways to Improve Space Diets
The study also examined increased intestinal permeability — often called “leaky gut” — a condition that can result from poor nutrition and may be exacerbated by the space environment. Intestinal permeability may interfere with how astronauts absorb nutrients and regulate immune responses.
If properly engineered, space-grown crops could offer a solution to these health challenges. The team outlined several potential strategies, including bioengineering plants with higher nutrient content, incorporating more antioxidant-rich species, and designing personalized nutrition plans using astronauts’ genetic information.
The study suggests targeting specific biological pathways, such as using compounds like quercetin, an antioxidant found in certain crops, to address bone health challenges at the molecular level. The approach emphasizes designing nutrition plans based on individual astronaut physiology, including how well their digestive systems can absorb nutrients.
Related Resources
Open Science Data Repository
Open Science Data Repository Analysis Working Groups (AWG)
About BPS
NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences Division pioneers scientific discovery and enables exploration by using space environments to conduct investigations not possible on Earth. Studying biological and physical phenomenon under extreme conditions allows researchers to advance the fundamental scientific knowledge required to go farther and stay longer in space, while also benefitting life on Earth.
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By NASA
Credit: NASA NASA has selected KBR Wyle Services, LLC of Fulton, Maryland, to provide services to the Human Health and Performance Directorate at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, which focuses on astronaut health, occupational health, and research that could help mitigate health risks for future human spaceflight missions.
The Human Health and Performance Contract 2 is a follow-on single-award indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract that begins its five-year period of performance on Nov. 1, with two possible option periods that could extend it through 2035. The total estimated value of the base period plus the optional periods is $3.6 billion. Leidos, Inc. of Reston, Virginia, is a subcontractor.
The contract will acquire support services for several programs, primarily at NASA Johnson. This includes the Human Research Program, International Space Station Program, Commercial Crew Program, Artemis campaign, and more. Services include ensuring crew health, safety, and performance; providing occupational health services; and conducting research into mitigating risks to the health, safety, and performance of future spaceflight crews.
The Human Health and Performance Directorate leads the global spaceflight community in protecting astronaut health and enabling human mission performance. Its vision focuses on humans living, working, and thriving in space, on the Moon and on to Mars, and its mission is to lead the global spaceflight community in protecting astronaut health and enabling human mission performance.
For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov
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Tiernan Doyle
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
tiernan.doyle@nasa.gov
Victoria Segovia
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
victoria.segovia@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Aug 11, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Johnson Space Center Human Health and Performance NASA Centers & Facilities View the full article
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By NASA
NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute/Alex Parker This image, taken by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft on July 14, 2015, is the most accurate natural color image of Pluto. This natural-color image results from refined calibration of data gathered by New Horizons’ color Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC). The processing creates images that would approximate the colors that the human eye would perceive, bringing them closer to “true color” than the images released near the encounter. This single color MVIC scan includes no data from other New Horizons imagers or instruments added. The striking features on Pluto are clearly visible, including the bright expanse of Pluto’s icy, nitrogen-and-methane rich “heart,” Sputnik Planitia.
Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute/Alex Parker
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