Space Travel Is Hard On the Human Body

The Ugly Reality of Space Travel on Your Body

The Space Between Us film was released in 2017. The story centers on a teenage boy who was conceived when his mother was an astronaut on a corporate mission to Mars. His mother died during childbirth and the boy was raised in secret by the scientists on the Mars station. The story is a romance and as a teenager he’s in touch with a girl from earth and he makes the trip to a planet he’s never seen. Once on earth the boy runs away from his handlers and meets up with the girl. The problem is his body can’t take the stress of being on earth because he was raised in the lighter Martian gravity. There’s a race to save him and get him back to Mars where he can survive. The movie of course has a happy ending for the lovesick teenagers. Here’s the movie trailer.

Endurance - Astronaut Scott Kelly’s biography of his year on the International Space Station was published in 2017. I received an autographed copy of this book when I heard him speak about it at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. The crowd was massive and very welcoming. Part of the research on space effects on the human body was a study between Scott Kelly and his twin brother, Mark, who is also an astronaut. Mark spent the year on earth and NASA doctors did many tests on them to determine how they aged differently. It was a fascinating book and a must read for anyone who enjoys books on space travel. The one thing I learned after Mark Kelly’s talk is that I definitely do Not have “The Right Stuff” to be an astronaut!

Spending time in space wreaks havoc on the human body. NASA uses the acronym RIDGE to define the biggest hazards.

• R - Space Radiation

• I - Isolation and Confinement

• D - Distance from Earth

• G - Gravity Fields

• E - Hostile / Closed Environments

The Human Body in Space is a NASA article that describes each of these issues and what happens to the human body. The longer people stay in space the worse these issues become. Long stays on the International Space Station, the upcoming Artemis Moon missions, and future missions to Mars all stretch time in space for astronauts.

Personal Update:

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I worked with Celeste Anton from Dandelion Web Marketing. She did a fantastic job bringing my vision for the website into reality.

Please check it out and let me know what you think.

Are you willing to take a long trip in space knowing the impacts on your body?

Does going on a mission to Mars interest you?

Please leave a comment.

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