The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) announced a new opportunity for Health & Life Sciences Data and Sample Mining (DM) or Research Models (RM) aimed at Canadian post-secondary institutions and Not-for-profit organizations established and operating in Canada.
In it’s introduction to the Announcement of Opportunity (AO), the CSA states that “the intent of this Announcement of Opportunity (AO) is to provide financial support to researchers at Canadian Universities and post-secondary institutions to conduct science investigations that will lead to a better understanding of human spaceflight risks while contributing to improve remote medicine and health benefits here on Earth.”
The introduction provides the context of the AO saying, “Future human exploration of space is expected to extend beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to the orbit and surface of the Moon, and ultimately to distant targets such as Mars. The resulting expeditions will require extended periods of exposure to weightlessness and space radiation, with confinement and isolation in the extreme environment of space, all of which are linked to substantial health and performance risks.”
“The CSA supports human spaceflight and maintains a highly qualified Canadian astronaut corps capable of participating in space exploration missions. Also, as stated in the vision and priorities of the recent Space Strategy for Canada, the CSA aims to enable scientific opportunities and global partnerships, and to harness space to solve everyday challenges for Canadians.”
“To achieve this, the CSA’s Health and Life Sciences (HLS) group conducts activities to generate knowledge in fields that sustain human space flights, mitigate health risks, and develop countermeasures for those missions. Since time and resources on the International Space Station (ISS) are limited, CSA aims to broaden science opportunities to enhance and supplement flight investigations ISS and to optimize utilization of the Canadian resource allocation ISS.”
Total funding for the Announcement of Opportunity (AO) is not set but will be based on the availability of funds. The number of grants issued will also depend on the requested amount by each proposal.
There are two types of funding categories.
- Category 1 – Data and Sample mining (DM): up to $75,000 for a maximum duration of one (1) year.
- Category 2 – Research Model (RM): up to $180,000 for a maximum duration of two (2) years.
The CSA has made it a priority to fund a variety of health initiatives related to space in recent years including the Deep Space Healthcare Challenge. AO submissions are due by January 20, 2025.
