Boston, Massachusetts
MGH Simches Research Center

Boston Human Spaceflight Symposium

Human spaceflight is entering a new era

Thank you to all who joined us for the 2026 Boston Human Spaceflight Symposium. We're grateful for the connections and conversations that made this year's event so meaningful, and we look forward to welcoming you back in 2027.

About the Symposium

The Boston Human Spaceflight Symposium convenes experts across medicine, engineering, academia, business, policy, and ethics to confront the most difficult challenges of human spaceflight. We began in 2025 on a clear premise: keeping people alive and well beyond Earth is no longer a theoretical question, and Boston is uniquely equipped to answer it. The case is straightforward. No region concentrates more of the required talent: world-class hospitals, a dense biomedical research ecosystem, and unrivaled engineering expertise within both academic and commercial institutions.

Starting in Boston, extending to the wider New England area, and onto United States and Global partners, we focus on building relationships and networks that encourage collaboration and growth at home. The center of gravity is local. The reach is global.

Featured Speakers

  • David Chou

    Wyss Institue – Harvard

  • Dana Levin

    Vast Space

  • Rebekah Reed

    Belfer Center, Harvard Kennedy School of Government

  • Mark Shelhamer

    Johns Hopkins

  • Matt Weinzerl

    Harvard Business School

  • Lonnie Petersen

    MIT Aerospace Physiology Lab

  • Erik Antonsen

    MGB SPEAR MED

  • Martin Elvis

    Harvard – Smithsonian

  • James McCully

    Boston Children’s Hospital

  • Rachel Bellisle

    Massachusetts Eye and Ear Institute

  • Sheila Xu

    AstroAccess

Partnership and Attendance

In order to keep the conversation sharp, and connections meaningful, space is limited.

Partnering with BHSS through sponsorship is a seat at the table. Packages will guarantee your invitation and give partners a hand in the symposium's direction, content, and to help set the trajectory, not simply attend the launch.


Hosts and Partners