Researchers: Submit Proposals to Analyze Commercial Astronaut Health and Performance Data
The NASA-funded Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH) is now accepting proposals for secondary analysis of de-identified commercial astronaut health and performance data in the EXPAND Database and Biorepository.
This solicitation is part of TRISH’s Enhancing eXploration Platform and ANalog Definition (EXPAND) Program. Working with commercial spaceflight providers and their passengers, the EXPAND Program collects health and performance data before, during, and after spaceflight from multiple commercial spaceflight missions. The data collected as part of EXPAND is housed in the EXPAND centralized research database and biorepository.
This peer-reviewed open call for proposals marks the opening of the EXPAND Database and Biorepository, making its data available to the scientific community for hypothesis-driven research.
The projects selected from this call for proposals will help enhance understanding of the health changes experienced during short-duration missions and in a non-governmental astronaut subject population.
If you have a research idea that fits with this open call for proposals, follow the steps below to submit a proposal for this EXPAND Exploratory Studies funding opportunity:
- Learn about TRISH’s EXPAND Initiative.
- Read the solicitation.
- Attend the pre-proposal webinar on 1:00 p.m. ET on March 26, 2026. Register here.
- Submit a Step-1 proposal through GRID. Proposals must be submitted for review by 11:59 p.m. ET on April 23, 2026. Proposers who are considering submitting a proposal must register in the system for award management (SAM) database (www.sam.gov).
Who can submit a proposal? Researchers from all categories of U.S. institutions and companies are eligible to submit proposals. Principal investigators may collaborate with scientists from universities, the private sector, and federal, state, and local government laboratories. Please visit the EXPAND Data Analysis Opportunity for full details.
Research Duration: One year
Award: This RFP will provide access to EXPAND data in lieu of a monetary grant. Please refer to the solicitation for additional details. Selected investigators will receive a non-monetary award consisting of:
- Secure access to the requested de-identified EXPAND datasets, and
- Limited technical support (a “data concierge”) to facilitate understanding of data dictionaries and study protocols.
Resources: Learn about the TRISH EXPAND Program and the EXPAND Database and Biorepository. Attend the pre-proposal webinar on 1:00 p.m. ET on March 26, 2026. A recording of the webinar will be made available with the RFP.
Deadline: Proposers must submit their Step-1 proposals by 11:59 p.m. ET on April 23, 2026 for consideration.
Background on TRISH: TRISH is a virtual institute empowered by NASA’s Human Research Program to help solve challenges of human deep space exploration. TRISH pursues and funds research to deliver scientific and technological solutions that advance space health and help humans thrive wherever they explore, in space or on Earth. Learn more about TRISH.
Apply: Be sure to carefully read through the resources linked above. Then, submit a Step-1 proposal through GRID. Proposals must be submitted for review by 11:59 p.m. ET on April 23, 2026. Proposers who are considering submitting a proposal must register in the system for award management (SAM) database (www.sam.gov).
Questions? Follow the link here for a form and select “open solicitation” to submit questions.
