Programme
The symposium's schedule will include in-person research sessions and panel discussions from invited speakers (listed below), and poster presentations as submitted by attendees. The symposium will start the evening on November 6, 2024, and end late afternoon on November 8, 2024. Note that all scheduled items will occur in-person at Western University.
Day one: November 6, 2024
13:00 – 16:30 Special Event
Workshop on Health Risk Mitigation Measures During Space Missions
Organized and hosted by the Canadian Space Agency
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Contribute your insights and help drive the future of space health research by participating in this dynamic workshop organized and hosted by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The workshop aims at engaging members of the space health research community in shaping future strategies with the CSA.
The interactive sessions will focus on:
a) Exploring connections between past and current CSA-funded research and the development of health risk mitigation measures.
b) Identifying new or enhanced solutions for mitigating health risks in space.
c) Highlighting opportunities for future funding to support innovative mitigation strategies and their applications on Earth.
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Participation is free and can be either in-person (for those attending the symposium) or virtual (for people willing to attend online). Registration is required for both attendance in person or online by completing the form linked. Participants attending the workshop online will receive an email from CSA prior to the event with information on the teleconference.
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17:30 – 18:30 Keynote Lecture
Pascal Lee, Director, NASA Haughton-Mars Project. SETI Institute, Mars Institute, Kepler Space University & NASA Ames Research Center, USA.
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THE HUMAN EXPLORATION OF MARS
Challenges and Wonders of the First Human Journey to the Red Planet
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Participation is free of charge and requires to be indicated during symposium registration.
19:00 – 21:00
Visit to the Hume Cronyn Memorial Observatory
Western University
Day two: November 7, 2024
08:00 – 09:00
Registration & Light Breakfast
09:00 – 09:30
Opening Remarks
9:30 – 10:15
Priorities and Opportunities for the Canadian Space Health Research Community
Mathieu Caron
Acting Director, Astronauts, Life Sciences and Space Medicine, Canadian Space Agency
10:30 – 12:00
Panel Discussion One – Human Factors, Isolation, and Confinement
Chair and moderator: Leena Tomi, Canadian Space Agency
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Suzanne Bell*, Biomedical Research and Environmental Sciences Division - NASA JSC
“Behavioral health and performance for future space exploration”
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Jelena Brcic, University of Fraser Valley, Canada
“Exploring individual stress reactions, coping, and team cohesion in extreme and unusual environments (EUE)”
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Denise Geiskkovitch*, Department of Computing and Software, McMaster University, Canada
“Human-Robot Interaction for space: What we can learn from Earth studies”
Michael Stolberg, Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada
“Blood flow restriction training: A new addition to the astronaut’s toolkit”
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*Invited speaker
12:00 – 14:00
Lunch Break
12:00 – 13:30
Special Event for Trainees and Early Career Investigators (lunch provided)
From analogues to spaceflight: Building a career in space health research
Chair and moderator: Roxanne Fournier, University of Waterloo, Canada
Richard L. Hughson, Schlegel Research Institute for Aging, University of Waterloo, Canada
Giuseppe Iaria, Department of Psychology, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, and Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Canada.
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14:00 – 15:30
Panel Discussion Two – Microgravity, Inactivity, and Human Health
Chair and moderator: Alexander Chouker, University of Munich
Dag Linnarsson, Karolinska Institute, Sweden
“Monitoring lung health in space with exhaled nitric oxide”
Tamara Franz-Odendaal, Mount Saint Vincent University, Canada
“An assessment of the effects of simulated microgravity on bone tissue in zebrafish”
Santiago Costantino, Université de Montréal, Canada
“Ocular biomechanical responses to long-duration spaceflight”
Dan Winer, University of Toronto, Canada
“Single cell analysis identifies conserved features of immune dysfunction in simulated microgravity and spaceflight”
15:30 – 16:00
Coffee Break & Networking
16:00 – 17:30
Poster Session 1
Day Three: November 8, 2024
09:00 – 09:30
Light Breakfast
09:30 – 11:00
Panel Discussion Three – Remote Community Care
Chair and moderator: Pascal Lee, Director, NASA Haughton-Mars Project. SETI Institute, Mars Institute, Kepler Space University & NASA Ames Research Center, USA.
Chantelle Richmond*, Western University, Canada
"You are the people and places you come from: Sharing a relational way of knowing from the perspective of an Anishinaabe geographer"
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Myles Harris, University College London, United Kingdom
“Health risks and prolonged field care during space exploration”
Carolyn McGregor, Ontario Tech University, Canada
“Health monitoring in space using AI and big data analytics”
Jose Guillermo Colli Alfaro, Western University, Canada
“Soft wearable technologies for remote health applications in space”
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*Invited speaker
11:30 – 13:30
Lunch Break
11:30 – 13:00
Special Event for Trainees and Early Career Investigators (lunch provided)
How to build a career in space radiation research
Chair and moderator: Marcelo Vazquez, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Canada
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Participation is free of charge.
13:30 – 15:00
Panel Discussion Four - Astronaut Health and Radiation
Chair and moderator: Marcelo Vazquez, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Canada
Marcelo Vazquez, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Canada
“Space radiation risks”
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Leena Tomi*, Canadian Space Agency
“Radiation protection standards and guidelines for Canadian astronauts”
Richard Hughson, University of Waterloo
“Cardiovascular risks induced by chronic low dose exposures to space radiation”
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Richard Richardson, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories
“Effects of space radiation on ocular tissues”
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*Invited speaker​
15:00 – 15:30
Coffee Break & Networking
15:30 – 17:30
Poster Session 2
17:30 – 18:00
Awards, Announcements, and Closing Remarks
Join us
Join our network and get informed about space health research in Canada (and internationally), and have the opportunity to connect with the space health research community through webinars, topic-focused meetings, research symposia, mailing list, and news delivery.
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We welcome all researchers and trainees affiliated with a Canadian (academic or non-academic) research organization and involved in performing space health research, or perform research that could be valuable in the context of space health. At this time individuals working in organizations located outside of Canada are not eligible for joining us.
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