Medical Operations Team

Health management operations are tasks performed to keep astronauts healthy before, during, and after spaceflight. These require the support of not only a flight surgeon but also experts in many different disciplines such as exercise physiology, neurophysiology, psychophysiology, radiation protection, environmental hygiene, and nutrition science in order to tackle various challenges that may arise.

JAXA and its international partner countries have formed medical operations teams that manage the health of astronauts from their respective countries. The ISS medical operations team includes flight surgeons, biomedical engineers (BMEs), and specialists in charge of areas such as physiology, psychophysiology, radiation protection, environmental hygiene, space food, and daily necessities.