UF Doctor Bridges Medicine, Engineering for Human Spaceflight Through VAST Space Experience

Peter Alexandrov, M.D., a University of Florida emergency medicine physician and member of the Astraeus Space Institute, completed a two-month rotation with VAST, a private space company hoping to soon launch the world’s first commercial space station. 

As part of Alexandrov’s training and education in space medicine and the UF Astraeus Space Institute and College of Medicine’s space medicine program development, Alexandrov worked closely with VAST’s lead flight surgeon Dana Levin, M.D., and engineering teams in Long Beach, California. Part of his role involved learning how to integrate medical expertise into the engineering design process — helping the company develop human systems that support long-term space missions. 

“Historically, there has been a disconnect between medical and engineering processes,” Alexandrov said. “But both fields are fundamentally about managing risk. Bridging gaps in communication and professional understanding is important to helping humanity gain a permanent foothold among the stars.”

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