Space medicine; David Iverson

By Katherine Hobbs

Published April 30, 2022 at 5:00 PM EDT

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This photo provided by NASA shows the new International Space Station after the crew of the Space Shuttle Endeavour captured the Zarya Control Module, left, and mated it with the Unity Node, right, inside the Shuttle's payload bay. This photo was taken after Endeavour undocked from the space station on Dec. 13, 1998, for the return to Earth. Almost two years later, the first crew _ American Bill Shepherd and Russians Sergei Krikalev and Yuri Gidzenko _ blasted off from Kazakhstan on Oct. 31, 2000, en route to the space station. Thus began 20 years of international cooperation and a steady stream of crew from around the world. (NASA via AP) — This photo provided by NASA shows the new International Space Station after the crew of the Space Shuttle Endeavour captured the Zarya Control Module, left, and mated it with the Unity Node, right, inside the Shuttle's payload bay.

As space launches become more common, they are no longer limited to professional astronauts. Civilian space passengers bring a renewed sense of excitement that space is part of human destiny.

Yet, there remain a few big issues: How do humans survive long and even short space flights? What are the health issues one must worry about and what might health care look like in that setting? Could space hold the key to unlocking some of our medical mysteries, or even hold the cure to some diseases?

Guests:

Rebecca Blue, MD, MPH, aerospace medicine physician and practicing emergency room doctor, Mayo Clinic Aerospace and Vestibular Research Laboratory.
Jan Stepanek, associate professor of medicine, director of the Aerospace Medicine Program, co-director, Aerospace Medicine & Vestibular Research Lab, Mayo Clinic.
Brendan Byrne, space reporter for WMFE, host of “Are We There Yet?”

David Iverson

Acclaimed broadcast journalist David Iverson joined us to talk about a very different space journey in his new book, "Winter Stars: An Elderly Mother, an Aging Son, and Life's Final Journey."

Guest: David Iverson, journalist and author.