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SEVERAL HUMAN HEALTH FACTORS MAY IMPACT HUMANS ON A MARS MISSION-Tham ‘09
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- WE STILL HAVE LITTLE REAL KNOWLEDGE OF HOW TO DEAL WITH THE POTENTIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS OF A STAFFED MARS MISSION-Bishop ‘10
- POTENTIAL MARS MISSIONS HAVE PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES THAT ARE NOT COMPARABLE TO ANY OTHER UNDERTAKING IN HUMAN HISTORY-Bishop ‘10
- CREW SELECTION IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY COMPLEX PROCESS AND HAS SUBSTANTIAL POSSIBLE PITFALLS-Bishop ‘10
- OUR EXISTING SPACE PROGRAM PROVES THAT HUMANS HAVE SUBSTANTIAL MEDICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS IN SPACE TRAVEL-Bishop ‘10
- LITTLE RESEARCH IS ONGOING ON HEALTH CONCERNS FOR LONG-TERM SPACE FLIGHT-Tham ‘09
- WITH CHEAP UNSTAFFED ALTERNATIVES, STAFF MISSIONS MAY BE TOO EXPENSIVE AND DANGEROUS-Coile 04
- A ROUND TRIP TO MARS WOULD EXPOSE HUMANS TO THE EQUIVALENT OF 400 YEARS OF NATURAL RADIATION EXPOSURE-Wald 03
- NO EASY ANSWER EXISTS TO THE POTENTIAL OF RADIATION COMPLICATING HUMAN EXPLORATION OF MARS-Wald 03
- CREW SANITY WOULD PREVENT A LONG-TERM MARS MISSION-Venezia and Harrison 04
- RADIATION IS A MAJOR OBSTACLE TO A STAFFED MISSION TO MARS-Venezia and Harrison 04
- TRIP TO MARS IS TOO LONG FOR HUMAN HEALTH; ASTRONAUTS MIGHT BE PARALYZED BY THE TIME THEY ARRIVE-Popple 04
- ALTERNATIVES TO PREVENT ASTRONAUT MUSCLE HARM ARE PARTICULARLY EXPENSIVE-St. Petersburg Times 04
- SIGNIFICANT PSYCHOLOGICAL CHALLENGES FACE FIRST MARS CREWS-Manzey 04
- MARS WILL BE DIFFERENT PSYCHOLOGICALLY FROM ANY UNDERTAKING BEFORE IN HUMAN HISTORY-Manzey 04
SEVERAL HUMAN HEALTH FACTORS MAY IMPACT HUMANS ON A MARS MISSION-Tham ‘09 [Ker; Mutant Diseases May Cripple Missions to Mars, Beyond; National Geographic News; 4 November 2009; http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/pf/77492132.html; retrieved 28 July 2011] For the new report, Frippiat and colleagues analyzed more than 150 studies of the effects of space flight on humans, animals, and pathogens. (Get the scoop on how low gravity makes it harder to get pregnant in space.) On Earth humans are protected from the effects of cosmic rays, because most of the particles are deflected by the planet's magnetic field. Out in space, however, such protections vanish, and cosmic radiation can cause mutations when it strikes the DNA inside cells. (Find out more about where cosmic rays come from.) The absence of gravity can also be detrimental to human health, because weightlessness allows structures to shift around within cells. The immune system is particularly vulnerable, since it relies on cell-to-cell interactions for ridding the body of harmful pathogens. One study, for instance, found that astronauts who had recently returned from space had white blood cells that were less effective at seeking out and destroying E. coli bacteria. Left untreated, E. coli can cause severe cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea as well as kidney and blood-cell damage that can lead to fatal complications. Keeping astronauts healthy on long-duration missions will be a major challenge for NASA and other space agencies, agreed Gerald Sonnenfeld, an immunologist and vice president of research at Binghamton University. "There is a potential for a problem in the immune system to create an issue in a long-term spaceflight, and this must be seriously investigated," said Sonnenfeld, who was not involved in the new report. But the problems are not insurmountable, Sonnenfeld said. For instance, the report authors note that using vitamins and compounds to help boost the immune system is one promising avenue for future research. Alternatively, the risks to astronauts could be reduced by shortening the time they have to spend in space, said Millie Hughes-Fulford, an immunologist at the University of California, San Francisco, and a former NASA astronaut.
[Sheryl; Ph.D., University of Texas Medical Branch; Moving to Mars: There and Back Again; Journal of Cosmology; October-November 2010; http://journalofcosmology.com/Mars106.html; retrieved 29 July 2011] Across the years of contemplating exploration of Mars, one notable conclusion stands out: The human element is both the greatest strength and the greatest weakness for a Mars mission. From the earliest lunar design projects, there has been a tacit recognition that the success of the group would be the primary limiting factor in long duration missions (La Patra, 1968). There have been any number of scholarly reports from as far back as the beginning of the space era in the early 1960s (most notable the Case for Mars series and the Mars Exploration Studies by the British Interplanetary Society) that have explicitly recognized psychological and sociocultural factors as critical components to mission success. Interpersonal group processes have clearly been shown to impact significantly on behavior and performance in most challenging environments, especially those characterized by isolation and confinement (National Commission on Space, 1986; National Science Board, 1987; Space Science Board, 1987). While considerable improvements and advances have been made in technology, engineering and human factors, understanding the issues dealing with psychosocial human health and well-being are not significantly better in the new millennium than in the earliest days of space travel. While it is true that medical issues have become more specifically defined and identified, we are still grappling with questions that were raised from the beginning: What is the best fit individual for a mission to Mars? What is the best group for a mission to Mars? POTENTIAL MARS MISSIONS HAVE PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES THAT ARE NOT COMPARABLE TO ANY OTHER UNDERTAKING IN HUMAN HISTORY-Bishop ‘10 [Sheryl; Ph.D., University of Texas Medical Branch; Moving to Mars: There and Back Again; Journal of Cosmology; October-November 2010; http://journalofcosmology.com/Mars106.html; retrieved 29 July 2011] The inescapable truth is that missions to Mars will not be psychologically comparable to any other undertaking humans have ever attempted. The enormous distance to travel and extraordinary novel environment will separate this chapter of human exploration from all other settings (e.g., historical expeditions to unknown parts of the Earth, wintering-over in Antarctica, long-term submergence in submarines, or even long-duration stays on orbital space stations). Mission scenarios call for crewmembers to endure extraordinary long periods of extreme confinement and isolation (18 months to 3 years) during their voyage to Mars and a stay on the Martian surface that may last from 500 to 1,000 days. Communication and data transmission will be significantly impacted as relative orbital positions between the Earth and Mars require one-way transmission times of 3 to 22 minutes and no real time two-way communication will be possible. Once underway, there will be no possibility for any re-supply or short-term rescue. Should something go wrong early in the mission, the crew would be faced with, at a minimum, continuing to Mars for a fly-by of the planet before heading back to Earth, and even then only if orbital alignment makes such a "quick return" possible. Known psychological risks related to individual performance, behavioral health and crew interactions will be magnified by completely new unpredictable psychological challenges. For instance, given the historical importance of looking back at Earth reflected in numerous reports of astronauts from orbital or lunar flights, there is strong speculation that an "Earth-out-of-view phenomenon" will have a significant psychological impact, referring to the fact that astronauts traveling to Mars will be the first human beings put in a situation where the home planet will be reduced to another dot in space (Kanas & Manzey, 2008; Manzey, 2000). Our closest analogs would have been the early exploratory seafaring missions losing sight of land as they sailed into uncharted open ocean. However, these crews did not have to worry about such fundamental life support elements as breathable atmosphere or explosive decompression. The region may have been unfamiliar, but the physical environment was taken for granted; the only genuine worries being a fear of falling off the edge of the world. CREW SELECTION IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY COMPLEX PROCESS AND HAS SUBSTANTIAL POSSIBLE PITFALLS-Bishop ‘10 [Sheryl; Ph.D., University of Texas Medical Branch; Moving to Mars: There and Back Again; Journal of Cosmology; October-November 2010; http://journalofcosmology.com/Mars106.html; retrieved 29 July 2011] So, what kind of person will qualify as the ‘best fit’? When selecting best fit individuals, it currently appears that we will have to seek those that do not require high levels of sustained stimulation or high levels of interpersonal interaction and support. The burden of support will have to shift away from the "absent" network of family and friends to members of the present crew. The reduced circle of social contacts will challenge crewmembers to be able to balance needs for affiliation with autonomy and privacy needs. Selected individuals will be characterized by effective coping strategies based on self-reliance and autonomy as well as a cooperative group focus. Individuals with high needs for social support will likely be more susceptible to the negative effects of social isolation from friends and family (Sandal, Endresen, Vaernes, & Ursin, 1999) as well as more likely to engage in interpersonal disclosure with team mates that may later lead to discomfort and regret (Suedfeld, 2003). This is an area that needs substantial further attention and research. The problem of selection is multifold. Individual factors deriving from both nature and nurture clearly contribute to group dynamics. For example, whether lack of privacy is perceived as a stressor, and thus produces detrimental effects on mood and performance, largely depends on both the personality of the individual as well as the cultural background (Raybeck, 1990). Similar effects may be assumed for other stressors as well, like monotony and boredom, time-pressure, or workload. In addition, culture also might be a factor influencing higher-order cognitive processes such as decision-making or the use of schemes in information processing. Studies in analog environments have confirmed that the kind of mission has a significant influence upon the type of "best fit" crew needed (Bishop, 2002; Endler, 2004; Palinkas, Gunderson, & Holland, 2000; Sandal, 2000). OUR EXISTING SPACE PROGRAM PROVES THAT HUMANS HAVE SUBSTANTIAL MEDICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS IN SPACE TRAVEL-Bishop ‘10 [Sheryl; Ph.D., University of Texas Medical Branch; Moving to Mars: There and Back Again; Journal of Cosmology; October-November 2010; http://journalofcosmology.com/Mars106.html; retrieved 29 July 2011] Despite the fact that most human space missions have successfully met mission goals to date, there is considerable anecdotal and behavioral evidence that a significant number of crewmembers have experienced psychological and interpersonal difficulties arising from the myriad stressors inherent in space missions, especially those involving longer durations (Shayler, 2000). Confined and isolated environments are characterized by potentially serious stressors: physical demands (e.g., working in suits, reduced gravitational fields, extravehicular activities) as well as inescapable environmental characteristics (e.g., imminent danger, noise, isolation, confinement, loss of normal sensory stimuli, low habitable volume per person, limited opportunities for variety and change and complete dependence on a machine-dominated environment). Anecdotal reports from space and studies conducted in space analogue environments on Earth (e.g., the Antarctic, submarines, space simulation chambers) have isolated a number of psychosocial issues that may negatively affect crewmembers during multinational space missions (Bishop & Primeau, 2001; Bishop, Santy, & Faulk, 1998; Kanas, 1998; Kanas & Manzey, 2008; Morphew & Maclaren, 1997; Palinkas L., 2003; Sandal, Endresen, Vaernes, & Ursin, 1999). These issues include: 1) tension resulting from external stress and factors related to crew heterogeneity (e.g., differences in personality, gender, and career motivation); 2) variability in the cohesion of the crew; 3) improper use of leadership role (e.g., task/instrumental versus emotional/supportive); 4) cultural differences; and 5) language differences. Post-flight debriefings of space crews have routinely detected strong differences in values among crewmembers arising from their differences in professions, culture, age or nationality, all of which have been cited as reasons for crew tension. Although crews were able to effectively operate and accomplish mission goals on these short duration international space flights (Bluth, 1997; Kozerenko, Sled, & Salnitsky, 1986; Santy, Holland, Looper, & Marcondes-North, 1993), it was recognized that long duration missions would require true accommodation rather than mere tolerance. LITTLE RESEARCH IS ONGOING ON HEALTH CONCERNS FOR LONG-TERM SPACE FLIGHT-Tham ‘09 [Ker; Mutant Diseases May Cripple Missions to Mars, Beyond; National Geographic News; 4 November 2009; http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/pf/77492132.html; retrieved 28 July 2011] Research into astronaut health was once much more active, Binghamton University's Sonnenfeld added. (Find out why one astronaut recently spent months in space wired with electrodes and recording the smells of his underwear.) But "as [space agencies] saw that there were really no serious issues on shorter term flights and even longer space station missions, they cut back on the interest and funding," he said. "I think [astronaut health is] back on the radar screen now that [NASA] is considering longer-term missions."
[Zachary; Budgeteers bushwhack president's Mars plan; They say the U.S. can't afford new space ventures; San Francisco Chronicle; 14 January 2004; page A15] But other space advocates question the usefulness of manned space flight. The success of relatively cheap unmanned probes -- such as the $820 million Spirit now exploring Mars -- has led some to suggest the future of space exploration is better left to robotic probes, especially after the Challenger and Columbia shuttle disasters. A ROUND TRIP TO MARS WOULD EXPOSE HUMANS TO THE EQUIVALENT OF 400 YEARS OF NATURAL RADIATION EXPOSURE-Wald '03 [Matthew; Mars Mission's Invisible Enemy: Radiation; The New York Times; 9 December 2003; page F1] The average American receives about 350 millirem of radiation a year: the fraction of solar and cosmic radiation that makes it through Earth's magnetic field and atmosphere; radiation from naturally radioactive rocks and minerals, some incorporated into building materials; higher doses from flying in airplanes; and sources like medical X-rays. In contrast, the astronauts who went to the Moon on Apollo 14 accumulated about 1,140 millirem, equivalent of about three years on Earth in their nine-day mission. The astronauts on the Skylab 4, who spent 87 days in low Earth orbit, received a dose of about 17,800 millirem (equivalent to a 50-year background dose on Earth). That dose was near the threshold of radiation exposure that produces clinically measurable symptoms. Longer-term effects like increases in cancer rates have not been observed in adults exposed to doses at that level, but experts presume the effects exist. By comparison, nuclear power plant workers are limited by law to exposures no greater than 5,000 millirem a year; in this country they are generally held below 2,000. A round trip to Mars would be of a different order of magnitude. Brookhaven puts the exposure at 130,000 millirem over two and a half years. That is equivalent to almost 400 years of natural exposure. But radiation in space is not like radiation on Earth. On Earth the dose is mostly made up of gamma rays, which have far less energy than the heavy charged particles of space. But beyond Earth's protective atmosphere and magnetic field, the radiation is mostly ions of every element on the periodic table up to iron (No. 26), moving at a substantial fraction of the speed of light, and approaching from distant stars in all directions. Astronauts in low Earth orbit get some protection from the magnetic field. Much less is known about the biological effects of this radiation, because very few places can simulate the interplanetary radiation. Brookhaven can do it, but its method, sequentially firing ions of different elements, resembles playing a symphony by mimicking one instrument at a time.
[Matthew; Mars Mission's Invisible Enemy: Radiation; The New York Times; 9 December 2003; page F1] On a trip to Mars and back, probably every cell in the body would be hit by an ionized particle or a proton, researchers say, and they have very little idea what that would do. ''If every neuron in your brain gets hit, do you come back being a blithering idiot, or not?'' asked Dr. Derek I. Lowenstein, the chairman of Brookhaven's collider accelerator department. A trip to Mars means ''trying to live in an environment that human beings were not built to live in,'' Dr. Lowenstein said. ''Space is not 'Star Trek,' but the public certainly doesn't understand that.'' On earth, radiation shielding is easy; just add concrete or lead. That is not so easy on a spaceship, where weight is of the essence. Nor is there much prospect of significantly reducing the amount of time the astronauts would be exposed, unless NASA develops a much more effective propulsion system.
[Todd and Bridget; MANNED JOURNEY FACES MISSION IMPOSSIBILITIES; THe New York Post; 3 March 2004; page 9] Mars, at the closest point in its orbit around the sun, is about 34 million miles from earth. A round trip there could take two years. One of the biggest difficulties would be maintaining the sanity of crew members living cooped up in a space vessel and base station for years on end. RADIATION IS A MAJOR OBSTACLE TO A STAFFED MISSION TO MARS-Venezia and Harrison '04 [Todd and Bridget; MANNED JOURNEY FACES MISSION IMPOSSIBILITIES; THe New York Post; 3 March 2004; page 9] The crew would also have to be protected from potentially deadly solar radiation throughout the whole trip. This would pose a massive problem because the best way to do that now is with sheets of heavy lead, which would be difficult to launch into space in large quantities. "We can't send spaceships that heavy, with that much lead, into space," said Weiss. "You would have to build super spaceships that would protect you from radiation." TRIP TO MARS IS TOO LONG FOR HUMAN HEALTH; ASTRONAUTS MIGHT BE PARALYZED BY THE TIME THEY ARRIVE-Popple '04 [Ian; Mars mission faces a hurdle: Astronauts may arrive paralyzed; The Globe & Mail; 24 January 2004; page F3] With the recent success of the rover Spirit, and the anticipated landing of Opportunity later this month, a manned mission to Mars is the talk of the planet. However, according to new McGill University research, stress caused to the human body by the weightlessness encountered during space missions may present a formidable obstacle to U.S. plans to establish a colony on the moon and launch a manned mission to Mars by 2030. A study by Dr. Doug Watt, director of the university's Aerospace Medical Research Unit, has found that weightlessness can reduce astronauts' muscle control. He likens the condition to a temporary version of Lou Gehrig's disease, a neurodegenerative disease that attacks nerve cells and pathways in the brain and spinal cord, ultimately causing paralysis. "Space is an alien environment to us," Dr. Watt said. "Gravity is the most stable factor in our lives and when it is suddenly removed, our body finds it difficult to cope." The research, the first medical experiment to be conducted on the International Space Station, examined astronauts' spinal-cord excitability during and after a prolonged space mission. Spinal-cord excitability is a key component of our brains' ability to control muscle contractions. The experiment involved the application of a tiny electric shock behind the knee of each astronaut, in order to replicate the less accurate but more familiar Hoffman reflex test where a doctor taps the knee of a patient with a rubber hammer. "The size of the resulting involuntary knee-jerk reaction reflects the number of motor neurons used and hence the level of spinal-cord excitability," Dr. Watt explained. "On Earth, the H-reflex response is generally the same every time," he continued. "The situation changes when the test is administered in space, however." The astronauts experienced a decrease in spinal-cord excitability of about 30 per cent -- a condition that remained for months on end. "Astronauts quite literally cannot generate the same amount of strength in their muscles," Dr. Watt said. "The mind of the astronaut may remain sharp and alert. It's their muscle control -- particularly the legs -- that is affected." The decrease in spinal-cord excitability could compromise the ability of an astronaut to react quickly and effectively in an emergency. "Although the condition itself does not deteriorate much over time, the duration of recovery for the astronauts does," Dr. Watt said. In addition, concern has been raised that this condition might affect astronauts' psychology over the long period of weightlessness required to reach Mars. A typical space mission lasts two weeks; the astronauts involved in the study spent 31/2 to five months in space. A mission to Mars may require astronauts to endure abnormal gravity for years.
[Making history on Mars; The St. Petersburg Times; 8 may 2004; page 14A] According to Dr. Watt, it is unclear how best to deal with the rigours of space travel on the human body. One option might involve the creation of an artificial Earth gravity within a Mars-bound spaceship. But that would be particularly expensive. SIGNIFICANT PSYCHOLOGICAL CHALLENGES FACE FIRST MARS CREWS-Manzey '04 [Dietrich; Institute of Psychology and Ergonomics, Technical University of Berlin; Human missions to Mars: new psychological challenges and research issues; Acta Astronautica; August-November 2004; page 781] The biggest psychological challenges astronauts have to cope with during prolonged space missions are related to the numerous habitability, psychological and interpersonal stressors they are exposed to. These are given by the harsh living conditions in a space habitat, the restricted range of environmental cues, the specific workload imposed on astronauts, and the complex psychosocial situation which is characterized by a lack of privacy, enforced social contacts with other crew members, and separation from the usual social network of family and friends. MARS WILL BE DIFFERENT PSYCHOLOGICALLY FROM ANY UNDERTAKING BEFORE IN HUMAN HISTORY-Manzey '04 [Dietrich; Institute of Psychology and Ergonomics, Technical University of Berlin; Human missions to Mars: new psychological challenges and research issues; Acta Astronautica; August-November 2004; page 781] Missions to Mars will not be comparable to any other undertaking humans ever have attempted. Certainly, some aspects of such missions are shared by other known settings like long-duration stays on orbital space stations, winter-over in a remote research station in Antarctica, long-duration missions in a nuclear submarine, or expeditions into unknown parts of the Earth in former centuries. Yet, there are also major differences which render missions to Mars a unique challenge from a psychological point of view. This can be illustrated by comparing psychologically relevant features of Mars missions with those of orbital spaceflight or a winter-over in Antarctica which often is regarded as one of the best space analog environments (see Table 1). The most important unique features, of course, are related to the enormous distance to travel and the very long enforced stay on the martian surface. Of course, the Russian space program has proven that a stay in a low-Earth orbit up to 438 days is possible, but this evidence is based on just one cosmonaut who never experienced a period of extreme social monotony that lasted longer than a few months (due to crew exchange and visiting crews), and who got a large amount of ground-based support. During a voyage to Mars and a stay on the martian surface, crew members are expected to endure extraordinary long periods of extreme confinement and social isolation which amount up to 1000 days. During all this time, the crew members have to rely on artificial life systems in order to survive. Depending on the Mars–Earth distance and the constellation of Earth, Mars and Sun, audio-, video-, or data-transmissions between ground and space will be delayed up to 40 min, or even be entirely blocked for different periods. Furthermore, no possibilities exist for any supply or short-term rescue flights. Consequently, ground-based support currently used to foster crew morale, psychological well-being, and mental/behavioral health of crew members during long-duration orbital spaceflight can only be provided to a minimal degree. Thus, it must be assumed that the risks for mission success and safety associated with all kinds of psychological issues known from different isolated and confined environments on Earth or from orbital spaceflight will largely be increased on Mars missions [19]. In addition, new psychological challenges will arise during these missions, some of them involving risks for mental and behavioral health which, in principle, cannot be assessed in advance. Directory: file -> fetch fetch -> 11 th Lit Semester 1 Final Study Guide!!! fetch -> Industrial Revolution Inventors fetch -> Analysis for Galveston Hurricane of 1900 fetch -> The Illuminators (Team 2) 1900 Galveston Hurricane Cycle a team Assignment fetch -> Team csi-utb ruth Reyes Jose Ferrer fetch -> Galveston Hurricane of 1900 Cycle a-teacher as a Problem Solver fetch -> Is Climate Change Starting a New Dust Bowl? Cycle A fetch -> What makes a storm a hurricane fetch -> The 1950s were the "Happy Days" because it was a time of economic prosperity, technology development, new entertainment, new fashion and family growth. The 1950s was a great time fetch -> Sputnik and The Dawn of the Space Age Download 1.49 Mb. Share with your friends:
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