A moonshot for female astronaut health, a win for all astronauts and space exploration

There has been a significant increase in women participating in spaceflight over the past decade. More female astronauts than ever have flown on space missions or will fly in the coming years as a part of growing government and commercial space efforts. As a result, more women are exposed to the risks of spaceflight for longer durations than in the past. At the same time, significant gaps in our scientific understanding of women’s health have been recognized through recent initiatives that include studying conditions specific to women (e.g., fibroids), conditions that disproportionately impact women (e.g., osteoporosis), and conditions that affect women differently than men (e.g., cardiovascular disease, specific cancers) 1 , 2 , 3 . In turn, major research initiatives are now prioritizing women’s health research to fuel the delivery of high-quality and patient-centered healthcare to women. Given the increasing involvement of female astronauts in advancing our knowledge of human capacity for long-duration spaceflight, it is critical to determine how to ensure their health and safety as well as optimize their performance. These data are of value as they also inform how to ensure health and quality of life for those on Earth.