Astronaut Demographics and Space Travel

What are the influences that sex and gender have on physiological and psychological or behavioral changes that occur during space flight?
The US Congress has directed NASA to plan for a human mission to Mars. A critical element of the planning is to ensure astronauts travelling to, working on, and returning from the Red Planet. In 2011, a report from a National Academy of Sciences Decadal
Survey emphasized the need to examine and understand the influence of sex and gender on physiological, psychological or behavioral responses to space flight. To date, male and female astronauts performed well in space, including several women who commanded space shuttle and space station missions.
Join Tony Darnell, Harley Thronson and Alberto Conti as they explore with Arnauld Nicogossian (George Mason University) and Charles Doarn (University of Cincinnati) current knowledge of demographics considerations in planetary missions. Carolyn Huntoon [former Director NASA Johnson Space flight Center, has been invited to participate.