Date: December 16, 2025
Location: Ichilov Innovation Center (I‑NEXT), Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center
LUCA 2025 marked the Israel Aerospace Medical Association’s (IAsMA) first annual community conference – an international gathering that brought together experts, innovators, and students to explore how aerospace medicine and extreme environment research are shaping the future of healthcare here on Earth.
LUCA 2025 reflects IAsMA’s broader mission to serve as Israel’s aerospace medicine translation layer-bridging space technology with human physiology, engineering innovation with clinical relevance, and research in extreme environments with impact on everyday healthcare. As Israel’s space industry expands, IAsMA ensures that human health remains central to its future.
Building Israel’s Aerospace Medicine Ecosystem
Hosted in collaboration with the Ichilov Innovation Center (I‑NEXT) and led by IAsMA, the LUCA 2025 conference placed Israel on the global map of aerospace health innovation. With participation from doctors, engineers, startup founders, defense sector representatives, students and international collaborators, LUCA showcased the power of interdisciplinary convergence.
Not Just for Astronauts
A key message throughout the day: space and aviation medicine are no longer futuristic or niche. Research from high-altitude flights, microgravity, radiation exposure, and isolated environments is being translated into real medical advances-helping patients in hospitals today and preparing health systems for tomorrow’s challenges.
Dr. Oren Milstein, CEO of STEMRAD, demonstrated how radiation protection developed for astronauts is now used in civil medicine and defense. Shai-Lee Spigelman, CEO of Ichilov Health Corporation, emphasized the strategic value of investing in cross-sector R&D to advance national healthcare resilience.
Innovation Across Disciplines
Aviv Kenelbaum from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Yossi Yamin of SpacePharma explored how space systems engineering and pharma research are merging to enable real-time diagnostics, remote treatment, and novel therapeutics. Dr. Omer Tahori, former commander of IAF’s Aerospace Medicine Unit, addressed medical decision-making at 30,000 feet-and how innovations in remote diagnostics are reshaping civil and military aviation.
Interdisciplinary Voices
Additional contributions came from Hadas Klein (Ministry of Economy), who emphasized building common language between regulators, researchers, and industry; and from academic and clinical leaders exploring how research in microgravity, radiation, and closed-loop health systems could improve everyday care on Earth.
The Mission Ahead
IAsMA’s LUCA 2025 conference is more than a single event-it’s a signal of a growing ecosystem. In the coming year, IAsMA will deepen its partnerships with hospitals, universities, industry, and government to build Israel’s national capacity in aerospace health science and innovation.
The success of LUCA 2025 reinforces the belief that when we break the boundaries between disciplines – and between Earth and space – we open new frontiers in medicine, technology, and human performance.
Stay Connected
Follow IAsMA for updates on research calls, expert talks, student projects, and next year’s LUCA 2026 conference. Together, we are building a future where Aerospace medicine fuels innovation for life on Earth.
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