ESA News
http://www.esa.int

12 June 2008

Medical research on ice

New medical equipment recently delivered to the Antarctic station Concordia
will help understand how our bodies physically adapt to this extreme
environment -- knowledge which could help prepare for a future human mission
to Mars. ESA is currently looking for a candidate with a medical background
to support projects at the research base.
 
The Antarctic station Concordia is located in one of the most hostile
environments on the Earth. Built on an ice plateau at 3 200 m altitude,
exposed to extreme isolation, temperatures, constant light in summer,
constant darkness in winter and other stressors, a stay at Concordia is a
huge challenge.

Harsh winter
 
For the up to 16 crewmembers that can be hosted in the station during the
Antarctic winter, conditions are even more severe as the harsh environmental
conditions make access to or from the station impossible. Any problems that
occur need to be dealt with autonomously by the crew with the resources at
hand.

Fortunately for ESA, many of the same constraints that naturally occur
during the winter at Concordia are quite similar to those that can be
expected for future crewed exploration missions, for example to Mars.

For this reason, in 2002, ESA established a cooperation with the builders
and operators of the station; the French Polar Institute (Institute Paul
Emile Victor, IPEV) and the Italian Antarctic Programme (Consorzio per
lAttuazione del Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide, PNRA
S.C.r.l.). Next to some technology validation, the main focus of this
cooperation is on medicine, physiology and psychology.

Together with the Concordia partners and a diverse group of experts, ESA has
defined the Long-Term Medical Survey (LTMS); a list of physiological and
psychological parameters that is collected by each Concordia crewmember,
with the goal of enhancing knowledge about human adaptation in this extreme
environment.

To facilitate the collection of physiological data, ESA commissioned the
development of an easy-to-use, minimally intrusive, integrated monitoring
device, taking into account that the majority of Concordia crewmembers have
no medical background. The first prototype was recently shipped to
Antarctica and is now being evaluated by the Concordia crew.

Other interesting medical and psychological research is still ongoing at the
station. For example, a current project investigates how blood clotting is
affected by the high altitude at Concordia. This research is very relevant
to understanding the 'economy class syndrome' -- the risk of thrombosis when
flying long-distance in airplanes. The psychological projects look for
example at how the crew adapts to the extreme environment, or how they cope
with the challenging situation. This type of research will also continue
throughout the coming winter season.

Call for candidates
 
As in recent years, ESA is sponsoring one crewmember with a medical
background that will spend the winter season at Concordia to support these
projects. Read the 'Call for candidates',
     http://spaceflight.esa.int/callforcandidates

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