"When people live in microgravity, the systems in our body that have evolved to tell our brains how we're moving, the vestibular organs, don't work correctly. Our brains learn to ignore those signals and so when we first get back to gravity, we are heavily reliant on our eyes to orient ourselves visually."
"A tandem walk with eyes closed can be quite the challenge! Learning about this can help inform how we treat vertigo, concussions and other neuro-vestibular conditions on Earth."
Astronauts experience significant health challenges due to prolonged microgravity, including bone loss, spinal issues, and altered DNA. Upon returning to Earth, they often struggle with balance, as demonstrated by NASA astronaut Christina Koch. In a recent video, she showed difficulty walking with her eyes closed, highlighting the brain's reliance on visual cues after adapting to microgravity. Koch noted that understanding these effects can aid in treating conditions like vertigo and concussions on Earth.
Read at Futurism
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]