
What Space Travel Teaches Us About Human Health
Special | 3m 29sVideo has Closed Captions
Space travel breaks down astronauts' bodies. How do we fix that?
Space poses unique challenges to astronaut health, from bone loss to muscle deterioration. At Wake Forest University, scientists are using mice in space to study these effects and develop solutions like artificial gravity. Their research could help future Mars missions, and potentially unlock new treatments for diseases here on Earth.
SCI NC is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
PBS North Carolina and Sci NC appreciate the support of The NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

What Space Travel Teaches Us About Human Health
Special | 3m 29sVideo has Closed Captions
Space poses unique challenges to astronaut health, from bone loss to muscle deterioration. At Wake Forest University, scientists are using mice in space to study these effects and develop solutions like artificial gravity. Their research could help future Mars missions, and potentially unlock new treatments for diseases here on Earth.
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship[upbeat music] - [Narrator] Despite nearly 70 years of space exploration, there's still a lot we don't know about the cosmos.
- [Astronaut] On behalf of the entire launch team, thanks for flying with Falcon 9 today.
We hope you enjoyed the ride.
- [Narrator] But one thing we do know is that space wreaks havoc on our bodies.
- The space flight environment is an extreme challenge to the health of humans.
- [Narrator] We rely on earth's gravity to maintain normal bone, muscle, and joint function.
So when we travel to zero gravity environments like the International Space Station or limited gravity environments like Mars, our bodies degrade.
- Lack of gravity or decreased gravity in the space flight environment can have an enormous effect on human health, and that's because there's never a time here on Earth where we're not exposed to zero gravity.
We have no real defenses against it.
- [Narrator] No real defenses yet.
- Alright, let's scroll through so we can see if there's any degeneration.
- [Narrator] It's what Jeffrey Willey and his team at Wake Forest University School of Medicine are trying to figure out.
- It seems pretty unusual up there.
- [Narrator] Willey has helped with five space flight missions to study how to best keep astronauts healthy in space.
Through their research, the Wake Forest team has to discovered a link between space and certain degenerative diseases on Earth, such as cancer.
- A lot of the conditions on Earth that we want to treat and defeat are the same, may have the same cause as some of the conditions that we see in space flight.
And so therefore, therapeutics that may work in space may be very effective for conditions on Earth.
[camera shutters] - [Narrator] Doctoral candidates, Chirayu Patel and Kaitlyn Reno, helped Willey with the recent space mission.
- [Astronaut] Lift off for the Falcon 9 and crew, Dragon.
Go NASA, go SpaceX.
- [Narrator] The mission launched aboard SpaceX and studied how mice respond to varying gravity levels in space.
This data can help them figure out potential countermeasures such as artificial gravity and how to protect and preserve joint, muscle, and bone health in space.
- There are two major aspects that impact joint health in space flight.
One of which is radiation.
The other, which is a lack of load bearing or gravitational conditions.
Artificial gravity could be one of those components that could help eliminate one of those variables and help provide that loading and potentially preserve the cartilage during space flight.
[treadmill rumbling] - [Narrator] And the million dollar question, if it works for astronauts, could it work here on Earth for people suffering from similar issues?
- What kind of technologies are needed to do that, and how can those technologies that we develop to safely take us to the moon and Mars, how can that benefit human health here on Earth?
[soft music] - [Narrator] We still have a lot to learn about the vast universe around us.
- So if we go to that side- - [Narrator] But with every mission, Willey and his team learn a little bit more about how to keep astronauts healthy as we venture the moon, Mars, and beyond.
- It's really important, especially for long duration space flight missions, be able to complete these missions successfully, especially the critical missions, and then also return safely back to Earth.
- We owe it to them, to the investment, and to us as a society, and certainly to the astronauts, to ensure that they can make it there safely.
- [Narrator] And not only are they making space exploration possible, but also paving the way for a healthier future for all of humanity.
SCI NC is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
PBS North Carolina and Sci NC appreciate the support of The NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.