13/04/2026 11:18 (UTC)
Tenerife’s hyperbaric medicine key to future NASA manned missions
La Laguna, Spain, Apr 13 (EFE).- NASA is considering designating the Canary Islands University Hospital (HUC) as a referral center in the event that future crewed missions encounter an emergency over the Atlantic, as the facility’s hyperbaric chamber would be crucial if astronauts were to suffer decompression sickness.To inspect these facilities, a NASA delegation visited the HUC on Monday. The delegation included NASA’s Chief Health and Medical Officer, James D. Polk; the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) for Human Health and Performance Directorate at the Johnson Space Center, Sharmi Watkins; the Chief of the Space Medicine Operations Division within NASA's Human Health and Performance Directorate at the Johnson Space Center, Gary Beven; and the head of NASA’s Space Flight Contingency Coordinator, Travis Houser.CAMERA: BELÉN RODRÍGUEZFOOTAGE OF THE CANARY ISLANDS UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL (HUC). SOUNDBITES OF NASA’S CHIEF HEALTH AND MEDICAL OFFICER, JAMES D. POLK.
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