Exploration Medical Capability Science and Research Overview and Update

The mission of the Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element is to advance medical system design
and risk-informed decision making for exploration beyond low Earth orbit to promote human health and
performance in space. In order to accomplish this mission, the Element takes a progressively Earth-independent approach to three main areas:
- Answering key clinical and science research questions that will help to address the challenges of
providing medical care in the extreme environment of space
- Applying systems engineering processes to medical system design with the goal of developing
robust requirements that can be fully integrated into future space exploration vehicle designs
- Developing and demonstrating novel medical technologies that will improve future medical
capabilities in space

This presentation will focus on selected scientific and technical conceptual drivers for the Element, the
current and future research risks and gaps, and provide an overview of the Element’s progress in 2022. In particular, it will address the ongoing effort for the IMPACT trade space analysis tool suite, the closeout work on a clinical decision support prototype, potential requirements for a long-duration lunar orbit and lunar surface medical system, and an International Space Station technology demonstration of a point-of-care laboratory analysis capability.