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American astronaut Marsha Ivins demonstrates the effects of microgravity on her hair in space. The effects of spaceflight on the human body are complex and largely harmful over both short and long term. [1] Significant adverse effects of long-term weightlessness include muscle atrophy and deterioration of the skeleton (spaceflight osteopenia). [2]
Psychological and sociological effects of space flight are important to understanding how to successfully achieve the goals of long-duration expeditionary missions. Although robotic spacecraft have landed on Mars , plans have also been discussed for a human expedition , perhaps in the 2030s, [ 1 ] for a return mission.
The responses of the human body to microgravity exposure during spaceflight involve adaptations at numerous levels. It is believed that skeletal muscle adaptations to microgravity, which affect both muscle mass and function, involve structural alterations in the neural as well as the myofibrillar components of skeletal muscle.
For organ dose calculations, NASA uses the model of Billings et al. [23] to represent the self-shielding of the human body in a water-equivalent mass approximation. Consideration of the orientation of the human body relative to vehicle shielding should be made if it is known, especially for SPEs [24]
The goal of space radiation research is to estimate and reduce uncertainties in risk projection models and, if necessary, develop countermeasures and technologies to monitor and treat adverse outcomes to human health and performance that are relevant to space radiation for short-term and career exposures, including acute or late CNS effects ...
Research on the ISS improves knowledge about the effects of long-term space exposure on the human body. Subjects currently under study include muscle atrophy, bone loss, and fluid shift. The data will be used to determine whether space colonization and lengthy human spaceflight are feasible.
Knowledge of the effects of gravity on CNS functions in humans, as well as elucidation of the basic mechanisms by which these effects occur, will be of direct benefit to understanding the impact of, and providing countermeasures for, long-term exposure of humans to the weightlessness of spaceflight and the partial gravity of Moon and Mars bases.
Spaceflight osteopenia refers to the characteristic bone loss that occurs during spaceflight. Astronauts lose an average of more than 1% bone mass per month spent in space . [ 1 ] There is concern that during long-duration flights, excessive bone loss and the associated increase in serum calcium ion levels will interfere with execution of ...