Roderic Olvera Young

Headquarters, Washington, DC May 13, 1998

(Phone: 202/358-4726)

RELEASE: 98-81

NASA AND YALE UNIVERSITY PUSH THE BARRIERS OF COMMUNICATIONS

AND
MEDICINE ON MT. EVEREST

As four climbers make their assault on Mt. Everest's summit

this week, NASA and Yale University will be testing new health
care devices based on space science technology. From the
mountain's extreme environment, health data will travel from the
base camp to the NASA-Yale telemedicine project. The problems of
high altitude adaptation, physiological stress and the climbers'
location represent great medical challenges similar to an
astronaut's situation in space.

"In a few months we will begin assembly of the International

Space Station with an eye toward further exploration of our solar
system," said NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin. "To ensure a
safe trip for our astronauts, we need the best computational,
communication, engineering, and medical technology. At NASA, we
are working on virtual environments for surgery, decision support
systems and the most advanced medical monitoring techniques. Just
think what this could mean for health care here on Earth. The
NASA-Yale project is helping us achieve these goals. I wish our
Mt. Everest pioneers great success as they help NASA climb the
final frontier."

A team of Department of Defense and MIT personnel will be

stationed at a base camp of 17,500 feet. The climbers ascending
Mt. Everest will transmit data from sensors monitoring vital signs
and location and, whenever possible, video of their progress.
Yale personnel, supervised by Dr. Ronald C. Merrell, chairman,
Yale Department of Surgery and director of the NASA-Yale project,
will support medical consultation and monitor the health status of
the climbers during their trek.

NASA and Yale have been working in partnership since July

1997, to contribute to the United States' competitive lead in
commercial applications of telemedicine. The goal of the program
is to develop and test next generation technologies. Tests on Mt.
Everest may lead to design improvements in future automated
medical monitoring and care systems for astronauts who may be in
space for months, not weeks.

Other NASA Telemedicine Activities

NASA practices telemedicine on a daily basis in the human space

flight program, currently comprising three areas: Space Shuttle,
Shuttle/Mir and planning for and construction of the International
Space Station.

Additional tests are already taking place at Yale through

NASA's telemedicine connection with Moscow. Using the Internet,
the "Spacebridge to Russia" has become a model for international
telemedicine activities. The telemedicine network linking NASA's
Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, and Star City in Moscow
supports NASA physicians caring for astronauts training in Russia.
NASA demonstrations of telemedicine's potential on Earth have
helped the rural Arizona Pagago Reservation and the Armenians
after the earthquake of 1988.

NASA has been a pioneer in telemedicine since the beginning

of human space flight. Using reliable, inexpensive communications
NASA has brought expensive medical consultation within the reach
of millions around the globe. For more information on NASA's
Telemedicine program visit our website:

http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/olmsa/aeromed/telemed/

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