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Astronaut Scott Kelly Describes One Year In Space -- And Its After Effects (brisbanetimes.com.au)
53-year-old astronaut Scott Kelly shared a dramatic excerpt from his new book Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery in the Brisbane Times, describing his first 48 hours back on earth and what he'd learned on the mission:
I push back from the table and struggle to stand up, feeling like a very old man getting out of a recliner... I make it to my bedroom without incident and close the door behind me. Every part of my body hurts. All my joints and all of my muscles are protesting the crushing pressure of gravity. I'm also nauseated, though I haven't thrown up... When I'm finally vertical, the pain in my legs is awful, and on top of that pain I feel a sensation that's even more alarming: it feels as though all the blood in my body is rushing to my legs, like the sensation of the blood rushing to your head when you do a handstand, but in reverse. I can feel the tissue in my legs swelling... Normally if I woke up feeling like this, I would go to the emergency room. But no one at the hospital will have seen symptoms of having been in space for a year...
Our space agencies won't be able to push out farther into space, to a destination like Mars, until we can learn more about how to strengthen the weakest links in the chain that make space flight possible: the human body and mind... [V]ery little is known about what occurs after month six. The symptoms may get precipitously worse in the ninth month, for instance, or they may level off. We don't know, and there is only one way to find out... On my previous flight to the space station, a mission of 159 days, I lost bone mass, my muscles atrophied, and my blood redistributed itself in my body, which strained and shrank the walls of my heart. More troubling, I experienced problems with my vision, as many other astronauts had. I had been exposed to more than 30 times the radiation of a person on Earth, equivalent to about 10 chest X-rays every day. This exposure would increase my risk of a fatal cancer for the rest of my life.
Kelly says the Space Station crew performed more than 400 experiments, though about 25% of his time went to tracking his own health. "If we could learn how to counteract the devastating impact of bone loss in microgravity, the solutions could well be applied to osteoporosis and other bone diseases. If we could learn how to keep our hearts healthy in space, that knowledge could be useful on Earth." Kelly says he felt better a few months after returning to earth, adding "It's gratifying to see how curious people are about my mission, how much children instinctively feel the excitement and wonder of space flight, and how many people think, as I do, that Mars is the next step... I know now that if we decide to do it, we can."
Our space agencies won't be able to push out farther into space, to a destination like Mars, until we can learn more about how to strengthen the weakest links in the chain that make space flight possible: the human body and mind... [V]ery little is known about what occurs after month six. The symptoms may get precipitously worse in the ninth month, for instance, or they may level off. We don't know, and there is only one way to find out... On my previous flight to the space station, a mission of 159 days, I lost bone mass, my muscles atrophied, and my blood redistributed itself in my body, which strained and shrank the walls of my heart. More troubling, I experienced problems with my vision, as many other astronauts had. I had been exposed to more than 30 times the radiation of a person on Earth, equivalent to about 10 chest X-rays every day. This exposure would increase my risk of a fatal cancer for the rest of my life.
Kelly says the Space Station crew performed more than 400 experiments, though about 25% of his time went to tracking his own health. "If we could learn how to counteract the devastating impact of bone loss in microgravity, the solutions could well be applied to osteoporosis and other bone diseases. If we could learn how to keep our hearts healthy in space, that knowledge could be useful on Earth." Kelly says he felt better a few months after returning to earth, adding "It's gratifying to see how curious people are about my mission, how much children instinctively feel the excitement and wonder of space flight, and how many people think, as I do, that Mars is the next step... I know now that if we decide to do it, we can."
help! i've fallen and i can't get up!
Perhaps paraplegics, I mean, how would a quadriplegic even operate the toilet? With their mouth?
Just put a wheel in space and spin it.
It is possible that the first several generates to go in to space will never be able to come back to earth.
Probably sending a high-altitude balloon would have accomplished the same thing for 1,000x less spending...
What are you implying; that this astronaut is a soft crybaby? I hate you.
Not the best idea. You need arms to get around in space.
People that are just missing legs might make sense.
excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
Did you even RTFS?
Nobody's saying "give up", they're saying "hey look at what we've learned that we'll need to adjust for on the longer journeys"
You mean shrinkage?
any golden era sci-fi lover knows this, but the over-paid 'geniuses" at NASA don't
once again, we need a REAL orbital space station, not a bunch of rich bureaucrats
Not hard to produce gravity. And you can still have a weightless bit in the middle for fun.
That said, astronauts are obsolete technology. Robots can do it cheaper and better.
increased risk of a fatal cancer for the rest of your life...
versus
not having to listen to the moron in chief nor hear about his twitter shit posts for a year
sign me up
Has NASA done any in-space studies of artificial gravity from centripetal force (or is it centrifugal?)? Many books and movies have done real-studies on rotating sections (2001, Rendevous on Rama, O'Neills space colonies, etc...). Even some pretty good math support on how long the lever arm has to be vs rotation speed.... I don't know how they would attach it to ISS, but it sounds like some kind of testing should be done.....
It's purely an issue of cost. To produce rotational artificial gravity, you need a fairly large lever arm (otherwise the gravitational gradient is rather large, which means your head feels less gravity than your feet and... well, I'm not sure what the effects of that would be, but I can't imagine it would feel pleasant), which means you need a ship far large than you can launch into space in one go. You could build/assemble it in space, but that's difficult and expensive. Finally, you can't add something like that to the ISS: if it breaks or goes wrong, you'd basically destroy the ISS, which would be very very bad (the ISS costs a few tens of billion USD, and the potential debris cause by an accident could cost tens of billions more).
"None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license." --John Milton
Of the 15 people that have spent more than a year in space does not constitute a statistically significant sample size to determine whether or not space flight is feasible. If anything it's a sign that we need to send *more* people up to quicken the pace of discovery.
Oh good, you pony up the money first.
Staying in shape is a struggle even on Earth. There should be some effort expended in keeping fit above that what's already been done if no-gravity is an issue.
There is. Ever heard of the COLBERT?
I would argue that he *should* go to the E.R., or see a doctor for the pain at least. There are doctors that have seen at least one of the 533 people that have been to space. I bet you NASA has the number to a few of those doctors too.
And those doctors have come to the same conclusions. Really, we're at the point of "Yeah, this is a problem" and working up solutions, rather than whatever nonsense you've got in mind.
A proposed solution for deep space missions (to Mars for example) is to send 2 ships at once, tether them using a long cable, and have them spin around each other like a pair of bolas. Instant gravity without a lot of extra weight (though building a ship for spin of say half a g does add weight too), and you can make the cable a lot longer than any arm, which helps with the coriolis effect.
If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
Female erect penises are crooked.
I just keep wonder why NASA has this fixation on trying to do space in weightlessness? Why not use centrifugal force to simulate gravity... Why not use plants and other natural processes for breathable air and self-sustenance?
I believe the answer lies in that it's scientists, and not engineers, setting the agendas. Scientists are trained to be scepticle. They ask what is and isn't. Engineers focus on solving problems. They ask how it can be done, not if. Scientists are seeking tests to publish articles in peer review journals for their interests and their carreers. Engineers are solving puzzles to achieve practical results. Their carreers depend on tangible products that result in new capabilities.
Sincerely,
Matthew C. Tedder
I would argue that he *should* go to the E.R., or see a doctor for the pain at least. There are doctors that have seen at least one of the 533 people that have been to space. I bet you NASA has the number to a few of those doctors too.
Good advice, I'm sure it never dawned on this NASA Astronaut that he should see a NASA physician after returning to earth, the first thing he did when he landed was probably to hop out of the Soyuz and catch an Uber home and go to bed like the slacker he is. Probably never even occurred to anyone at NASA to have him see a physician. Sounds like they should have just talked to you.
I thought you were referencing Krogans testicles for a second. Speaking of which, some genetic engineering might be the only way to survive on and in Mars long term anyway. The only problem is that the research could be done only in places like NK, with the fully committed population and the benefit of the country above any ethical concerns.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
A rare type of Dwarfism.
http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff...
Spacers gotta be spacers. it's a religion. Don't try reasoning with him.
For 30 years, science-fiction depended on the idea of a spinning torus in space, providing gravity to either a gymnasium or a complete habitat. While science-fiction rarely wondered about the food supply, the answer when given, was either food (and flavour) in tablet form, or a biosphere handling all organic processes.
When NASA talks about deep-space travel, they mention bone-mass loss, radiation, isolation and lack of back-up systems: The 'do or die' factors, but they need to consider all quality of life factors for such missions, like the authors who dreamed of colonists in space.
Not just cost, but also operational complexity / opportunity for failure.
If you make two "gravipods" and tether them, theoretically they can spin and achieve whatever force you want on the occupants - longer tethers mean lower RPMs for the same force, but no matter how you configure it the whole thing has to be stronger to withstand the forces, and docking with something spinning like that isn't nearly as easy as 2001 made it look.
Of the 15 people that have spent more than a year in space does not constitute a statistically significant sample size
Oh really? What, pray, is the statistical test you are using to determine a sufficient sample size?
Seriously, don't play that card if you can't back it up.
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
15 people already in space doesn't prove space flight is possible? Because of your blend of misunderstood statistics?
LOL hell even 1 is enough.
Dumbass XD
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
tldr;
* only 40% of missions have actually succeeded, i.e. not crashed
* microgravity will render astronauts helpless. I.e., unlike earth, there won't be anybody at the destination to carry you off on a stretcher and treat you back to health. (Bone loss and vision changes/glaucoma, low blood pressure, T-cell reductions). You need a rotating setup for centripital gravity.
* a piece of rock the size of a beebee can wreak enormous damage to the ship; think Apollo 13
* radiation; a solar flare would be fatal to astronauts.Van Allen belts mostly protect against charged particles. If a flare hits a mission outside the Van Allen belts, the astronauts will die eventually, unless the mission carries literally tons of lead shields. The moon missions were lucky to not get hit. A Hohmann transfer orbit takes approx 6 months to get from earth to Mars (or visa versa). You will get hit by solar storms
If we could get an "ion-drive" to get us there in a month, that will cut down the the bone loss, and exposure to radiation.
I'm not repeating myself
I'm an X window user; I'm an ex-Windows user
I have been arguing for years that the Lamborghini Veneno Car really doesn't really exist because only 3 were ever made! Finally someone who have a real understanding of how important statistical significance is and is able to explain it in full glory!
Thank you sir!
I find the idea that we can change so much to be intriguing, not a problem so much as a sign of opportunities. It makes me wonder if anyone has ever researched the changes that would occur in an environment with increased gravity.
What would happen if you were to put an athlete in a huge centrifuge and gradually increasing the "gravity" for a year prior to the Olympics? You'd probably have to get them out a few weeks early so that they could relearn dexterity in our lower environment, but the increase in strength throughout their system would likely last for months.
He promised! He would go to Mars, and beyond. He promised us. Therefore, as an American YOU must be a lair. I can't believe that Lovely Elon can be wrong. Why, he has no experience with any of this. But he does know how to con people out of billions of dollars.
Ergo, Elon is my hero. BARFFFFFF.
Haven't you seen the movie WALL-E?
When they start growing frin embryo state, they start to have mutations. Over a period of time, positive mutations get tuned and negative mutations kill the embryo/person. We we have a space-living race of humans adapted to less gravity.
Covered in Arthur C Clarke's 3001 where space towers exist but folks in areas of less than 1/2 earth gravity really can't return to the surface, without life support chairs etc.
In terms of exploration a man in a space suit (can) really can't aquire more info than a robot and in fact less without cameras etc, as the robot or the camera's will have a wider wavelength of vision than a human. About the only reason to go there is speed of making decisions, and as robots get better they will be able to go further before human input is required. It is sort of like what has happend to deep under sea exploration which more and more is being done by autonomous vehicles. Given the increased cancer risk, the evident degredation of the body in zero G it seems to make a lot more sense to send our silicon cousins than humans.
I don't know why but this quote always stuck with me...
Sex. Drugs, and Unix.
This has to be a troll.
~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
I know that replying to you is to an extent playing into your racism and xenophobia, but you do realize that if you regularly send only a particular racial group like South Asians out into space as a matter of regular colonization and settlement and do so fully expecting them to adapt and be capable of living and working in those conditions, that the group that you profess so much hatred for will be the most successful racial group in human history, having been the only group to successfully colonize space and move beyond Earth...
Hell, they may be the only racial group to survive the eventual end of a habitable Earth, the only humans left in the universe.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
fuck you are a god damn retard
I was blown away at watching space Debris pass the ISS recorded by Scott
https://youtu.be/g7_HEtBVDLI?t=810
Luna is the key to getting off this planet.
1) We master fast, safe travel to and from Luna. Think some kind of cross between Space-X and the Shuttle and Apollo LEM. Maybe something like Space-X takes you to IIS, then you board a Shuttle to Luna orbit, then a sturdy LEM departs the cargo bay or top half, and lands on Luna surface then can take-off back to Shuttle leaving nothing behind, then Shuttle travels back to IIS, then Space-X back down to Earth while Shuttle stays in orbit.
2) We establish a permanent colony on Luna. Dig down and use Lunar rock to shield from radiation. Build large loops underground that centrifuge up to 1G for normal living. Learn hard lessons of living off Earth, but with not too horrible 4 day return if needed using technology in Step 1.
3) Build Space Elevator - it is possible on Luna with existing materials and technology. Very hard if we have to ship the materials up, but we may find what we need on Luna.
4) Use Lunar resources to build large interplanetary vessel powered with ion drive in Luna orbit with the Elevator. Step 3 is huge, but this will make Step 3 look like a picnic. It would have to have enough shielding to keep radiation down to earth normal levels, rotate to simulate 1G for living, and be able to make the trip to Mars, or elsewhere, and back without refueling, and carry it's own Space-X, or two, for landing on the surface and taking you back up to the ship and all the fuel that requires.
5) Make permanent colony on Mars using lessons learned in Step 2. Dig down to shield. Centrifuge to 1G for living. Etc.
We get to Mars eventually, but we learn how to get there and how to live there by doing it on Luna first. Next would be in the Asteroid Belt on some minor planets. Or perhaps turning large asteroids into space stations. Lots of possibilities once you know how to get this far.
Imagine a vehicle like the space shuttle deploying a weight on a long tether from its cargo bay. Creating the spin would be somewhat complicated, the weight would need rockets on it, but it shouldn't be impossible. The arc the shuttle follows could be as large as you have line for, and the astronauts could stand on the floor of the shuttle. There might not be any need to modify the shuttle. I think the problem is that NASA is excessively risk averse, but being ridiculously underfunded doesn't help either.
Come to think of it, the weight may not even have to be a weight. A constantly firing ion thruster might be a better solution.
This is reality for space habitation. The easier option is to colonize the seabed. It is much closer, requires the same kind of technological investment and developments, and has easy access to water for drinking and breathable air production. It also has a much more practical economic motive with the methane hydrates literally sitting there, no intensive mining required just collection and transportation. Space utilization is still the best for understanding the universe and improving communications technology, but humans have better places to spread to first. Especially in terms of extinction events, a seabed colony has better odds than a space-based or martian/venusian colony. There is real physical geological evidence that 90%+ of all life has been wiped out in the past, but what survived was on and just underneath the seabed. That is the best place for our survival also.
Oh really? What, pray, is the statistical test you are using to determine a sufficient sample size?
Chi-square? G-test?
Seriously, don't play that card if you can't back it up.
Your inability to understand statistics is your problem, not ours.
Mr Kelly mustâ(TM)ve had some idea this wasnâ(TM)t going to be so great when he signed up for the mission. That is a pretty brave thing to do, effectively giving away his [quality of] life for the benefit of all others.
I really hope useful data is gathered from this experiment, and that he is looked after well for the rest of his life.
if you regularly send only a particular racial group like South Asians out into space as a matter of regular colonization and settlement and do so fully expecting them to adapt and be capable of living and working in those conditions
That's what Japan is for, first we nuked them, then their reactor blew, now the North Koreans are going to misfire onto them, another 3-4 rounds and we'll be able to isolate Human-compatible radiation resistant genes to splice into everyone. The first step to space colonization is irradiating the fuck out of the Japanese.
Nope, we should send a newborn, since he never experienced 1G (from day 0).
Slashdot, fix the reply notifications... You won't get away with it...
so you want to send fat people in space ? you also need to send lots of food extra with them...
No, you just reassure them there will be lots of food in space. Don't actually send it.
Do you know who Scott Kelly is? He is in unique position sharing his experience in space. Why? Because his brother, Mark, whose also an astronaut, stayed on Earth as a control subject. Statistically speaking, how many people have unique position as Scott and Mark?
Of course there is no "anti-gravity" but there is a way to create gravity...centrifugal force.
This is so well know I won't even explain it. The engineering has already been done on this at NASA and it's not really that big of deal, although it calls for a more expensive, complex and larger space craft.
It is obvious than humans were not designed for a weightless environment and longer space missions to Mars or anywhere else will require a rotating work/living space.
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
... you've never seen Japanese movies and hentai, I guess. Continue irradiating them like that and you get Gozilla and tentacle monsters with a fixation on school girls.
#DeleteFacebook
We are not tourists on the Earth. We ARE the Earth! We are not the moon. We are not Mars. We are not anywhere else in the universe. We are made to live nowhere else. Period. All this space travel and "colonization" enthusiasm is naive and deadly. It is also immoral to support loudly or quietly a belief in space that can only lead to the horrible deaths of numerous people.
E Proelio Veritas.
So I guess this "astronaut" has not seen the Passengers movie yet. They have already figured out how to generate gravity on a space station. Duh....
The pipe dream that we're going to float all over the solar system, hop out on zero-G weakened legs, and explore the surface of another world for 6 months.
We're probably going to have to wait until we've developed rotation spacecraft. And, this WON'T be trivial because the Coriolis (?) effect means you have the make the spacecraft sufficiently large for humans to adjust to the rotation. Spinning an upper stage of a Saturn V won't do it.
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
Simple fix, stop sending up/building dinky little stations/craft. Actually build real stations/bases/ships with artificial gravity or the ability to quickly get to and back from a destination with gravity/artificial gravity. What we've been doing in space over the last few decades is equivalent to routinely sending gold plated disposable dog sleds to the south pole on ships that shed large chunks of their hull as they sail, starting out the size of a mega-yacht and returning to port the size of a ski-boat. Only part of our issue is technical (ask proven by SpaceX, Blue Origin, etc), the rest is waste (or fraud depending on your point of view).
From; https://www.theverge.com/2017/3/21/14805232/nasa-twin-study-astronauts-mark-scott-kelly-space-interview
Mark and Scott Kelly are the only twins that have ever traveled to space — and their experience will be invaluable if we want to get to Mars one day.
The brothers are taking part in what NASA calls the Twins Study — a genetic experiment to see how our bodies change in zero gravity in the long term. That’s important to understand before we put humans on a spaceship and send them on a round trip to the Red Planet.
Between 2015 and 2016, Scott spent 340 days on the International Space Station, while his genetically identical twin Mark stayed on Earth to function as a control subject. Before, during, and after Scott’s trip, the brothers have been giving NASA numerous biological samples — blood, saliva, poop, you name it. By comparing Scott’s samples with Mark’s, NASA is trying to understand what long-term space travel does to our bodies.
THEIR EXPERIENCE WILL BE INVALUABLE IF WE WANT TO GET TO MARS ONE DAY
Some preliminary findings have already come out. One study showed that Scott’s DNA changed while he was in space: his telomeres — the protective caps on the end of DNA strands — were unexpectedly longer than Mark’s. (Telomere length can affect aging and age-associated diseases.) Another study showed that there were major fluctuations in Scott’s gut bacteria while he lived in zero-g compared to his twin.
Engineers are busy trying to do work. Centrifugal force is simply shorthand that enables convenient, quick communication. Just beware the pedants.
I wonder whether a hundred years from now people will be shaking their heads and saying, "I can't believe people were allowed to go into space without active shielding from ionizing radiation." ...kind of like we shake our heads today after reading about how people worked with microwaves in the 40's and 50's or with x-rays half a century prior to that.
Absent a fundamental breakthrough in propulsion technology (i.e., really energy generation tech), shielding spacecraft with 3 cm to 5 cm layers of lead, thorium, etc. seems impractical if getting from Point A to Point B within a reasonable amount of time is a desired outcome. We'll have to develop active shielding tech that mitigates exposure not only to photons in the x-ray and gamma ray range but also relativistic sub-atomic particles. Not easy.
We've got astrology, the NFL, crystals, and Mars Colonization. I guess there's less useful ways to spend (waste) time. Some profoundly ignorant comments here. Step 1. Demonstrate a 100% self-sufficient closed ecology capable of supporting at least 20 people. By "closed", I mean in the thermodynamic sense of zero mass in/out. By "self-sufficient" I mean supplying all of its own energy, oxygen, food, water, and shelter.
We can't do this, because we don't know how. Check out the sorry history of Biosphere 2. The only active program afaik is MELiSSA and that's studying micro-ecologies. These discussions are astoundingly stupid. It's like watching people debate how many angels can fit on the head of a pin. (and about with the same grasp of reality). What's really amazing is that this isn't being heavily studied by psychologists and sociologists as case studies in willful self-delusion.
We have perfect data on what 1g does to a person. Following extended ISS and MIR missions, we have pretty decent data on 0g - and the answer is that it slowly kills us. But we have literally no data WHATEVER on what 0.17g (moon) or 0.38g (mars) does to us.
Is that enough gravity to avoid 100% of the problems in 0g? Does it actually have ALL of the problems of 0g?
We really have no clue.
Given the nature of orbits and getting to Mars and back, you either have to stay for no longer than 2 weeks - or you have to stay for an entire year. If we send people to Mars for 2 weeks - after 6 months in zero-g flight - and with another 6 months of zero-g to get home again - the effect on the crew will be within the range of adverse conditions that we've seen for 12 months in zero-g (VERY BAD!), regardless of what 2 weeks at Mars gravity does to them. But if we send them for an entire year - then they could easily be anywhere between dead and fully healthy when they head home.
The 2 week mission provides us with no information whatever. The second approach is REALLY dangerous. If Mars gravity is no better than zero-g then the astronauts will have had 2 years of inadequate gravity...and they may well end up dead. We have NO CLUE what 2 years of inadequate-gravity does to people.
So what we NEED to be doing - as a matter of urgency - is sending a spinning 1/3rd g artificial gravity environment into orbit and sticking some astronauts inside it for months at a time. All we need is a reasonable sized crew compartment (Hi Bigelow guys! This is your thing!) and a decent counter-weight with a strong cable between them. All the crew have to do is live there and exercise daily. Heck, I bet we could find people who'd pay millions to do it.
This is actually a MUCH more important thing to know than what we'll gain by sending people to Mars. It determines whether mankind has any kind of future at all in space or whether it's robots all the way.
None of the efforts to get people to Mars appear to have that anywhere in their mission plans...which is crazy!
www.sjbaker.org
Ugh, what the fuck happened to Slashdot?
Interesting read but seriously it sounds like this guy is saying we've made little progress in addressing these health issues in >50 years of space flight. This stuff wasn't unknown even back in the Apollo days. We've had this space station for 10's of years, what exactly are we spending our money on if not to study & try to combat these affects?
you've found that you underestimated the strength needed.
Nonsense!! MOAR STRUTS!!
Thank You for that.
I swear at this pace they are going to start teaching the flat Earth theory in U.S. Schools.
~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
We know how to create artificial GRAVITY here on earth and in outer space. We just need one small gymnasium module near the center of the ISS Space Station. Astronauts can work out in the gym for one hour a day and that'll help. I'm not a scientist, but ,......DUH....