MCW receives $1.8 million NASA grant to research space travel

Can space travel hurt your heart? The Medical College of Wisconsin has received a $1.8 million grant from NASA to find out. John Baker, a professor of cardiothoracic surgery, is the primary investigator of the grant, which aims to determine the risk of developing degenerative heart disease from exposure to space radiation. NASA is planning human space missions that require astronauts to live outside the earth’s protective atmosphere for long periods of time.

“We’ve seen cardiovascular damage in people on earth who have been exposed to high levels of radiation-for example, survivors of the atomic bomb in Japan,” Baker said.  “As part of this research, we will conduct ground-based studies to assess the increased risk of developing cardiovascular damage in space.”