Astronomy and Space

Effect of spaceflight on the human body

The effects of spaceflight on the human body are complex and largely harmful over both short and long term. Significant adverse effects of long-term weightlessness include muscle atrophy and deterioration of the skeleton (spaceflight osteopenia). Other significant effects include a slowing of cardiovascular system functions, decreased production of red blood cells (space anemia), balance disorders, eyesight disorders and changes in the immune system. Additional symptoms include fluid redistribution (causing the "moon-face" appearance typical in pictures of astronauts experiencing weightlessness), loss of body mass, nasal congestion, sleep disturbance, and excess flatulence. A 2024 assessment noted that "well-known problems include bone loss, heightened cancer risk, vision impairment, weakened immune systems, and mental health issues... [y]et what's going on at a molecular level hasn't always been clear", arousing concerns especially vis a vis private and commercial spaceflight now occurring without any scientific or medical research being conducted among those populations regarding effects. Overall, NASA refers to the various deleterious effects of spaceflight on the human body by the acronym RIDGE (i.e., "space radiation, isolation and confinement, distance from Earth, gravity fields, and hostile and closed environments"). The engineering problems associated with leaving Earth and developing space propulsion systems have been examined for more than a century, and millions of hours of research have been spent on them. In recent years, there has been an increase in research on the issue of how humans can survive and work in space for extended and possibly indefinite periods of time. This question requires input from the physical and biological sciences and has now become the greatest challenge (other than funding) facing human space exploration.

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See also

• ▸Hitomi (satellite)
• ▸History of Tibetan Buddhism
• ▸Europa Lander

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