Space travel…can you pass a test?
Yes, even in outer space you have to make the grade.
That’s the news from a team of Kansas State University researchers, funded by NASA to research what physical characteristics are necessary for an astronaut to perform tasks on the Moon.
The team effort is focused on ways to assess whether a person has enough physical capacity to perform the lunar work.
A microgravity environment causes the weakening of muscles and the immune system, and it deteriorates the cardiovascular system’s ability to regulate blood pressure.
Thomas Barstow, professor of kinesiology at K-State this weakening of the human body can affect an astronaut’s ability to perform necessary tasks, such as climbing ladders, walking or opening doors.
For the safety of the astronauts, NASA wants to make sure they are physically fit enough to perform those tasks during future missions to the moon and even Mars.
The goal of the NASA-sponsored research, Barstow notes, is to develop a simple test or a series of tests that astronauts can use in space to identify their physical conditioning and to determine if they have the capacity to take on tasks.
Year-by-year study
The project is funded by a $1.2 million grant from NASA.
Each year of the three-year project focuses on a different aspect of space travel.
Year one: The researchers will recruit 100 people to undergo an obstacle course of tasks that NASA has identified as simulating lunar activities — including dragging a dummy, climbing up and down ladders, pushing a wheelbarrow of rocks, and walking for 10 kilometers.
The participants also will perform physical fitness tests, such as running on a treadmill and arm exercises. Sensors are being developed that the participants can wear to measure muscle activity and the oxygen circulating to them while performing the tasks.
Year two: The plan calls for development of a support system that can simulate different levels of gravity. The systems works by suspending the participant like a marionette — with cables that are attached to a platform and can be adjusted to simulate the moon’s gravity or gravity on mars. The system is hung from a forklift, or telehandler, so that it can move across a terrain while the subject traverses a simulated moonscape.
Year three: K-State researchers plan to observe participants performing the lunar tasks in space suits. Pressurized space suits worn could make on-the-spot tasks more difficult, especially work that requires using hands to grip objects. The study team also plans to develop special physical tests just for the arms and forearms.
At the end of the three years the study team hopes to continue working with NASA to develop countermeasures, or ways the astronauts can maintain strength and endurance in space.
For now, the project creates research opportunities for kinesiology students, and Barstow is looking for 15 to 20 students to help with research.
By LD/CSE