Astronomy: space conquest and the latest news from the stars

[Christophe]

[Christophe]

Bear-inspired astronaut 'hibernation' could revolutionize space missions

Long-duration space missions place extreme physical and psychological demands on astronauts. A study conducted by the European Space Agency (ESA) then focused on the biology of hibernation in reducing metabolism, and therefore stress, reducing the need for oxygen, food and water. The torpor generated will however require monitoring of the crew by artificial intelligence.

When astronauts prepare for a long flight, they face significant logistical challenges. Indeed, the size of the vessels does not allow to store a lot of material and food. Such a trip requires "about 30 kg per astronaut per day, and on top of that, we have to take into account the radiation as well as the mental and physiological challenges", explains in a press release Jennifer Ngo-Anh, one of the authors of the study and research and payload coordinator of human and robotic exploration at ESA.

It is then that hibernation takes on its full meaning, since in a state of torpor, the astronauts would not need to drink or eat. In the animal kingdom, the whole point of hibernation is to save energy and resources; animals reduce the activity of their metabolism, their heart rate, their respiration, their body temperature, and the only energy required for the functioning of the latter is extracted from stored fat.

The bear model
Tardigrades, frogs and reptiles are the champions of hibernation, even if the bear remains the best model for humans because it hibernates (a less critical stage than hibernation). Its body mass is similar to ours and it only drops its temperature a few degrees for hibernation, a limit considered safer. Like the bear, the researchers would encourage astronauts to build up fat reserves before plunging into a kind of accentuated hibernation, or a kind of partial hibernation.

But wouldn't spending six months in this state pose a risk to human health? On the contrary, according to scientists. “Research shows that bears emerge from their dens in good health in the spring, with marginal loss of muscle mass and it only takes them about XNUMX days to return to normal. This teaches us that overwintering and hibernation prevent atrophy of muscles and bones due to disuse and protect against tissue damage,” says Alexander Choukér, professor of medicine at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, in Germany.

Furthermore, "reducing the metabolic rate of a crew en route to Mars to 25% of the normal state would greatly reduce the amount of supplies and the size of the habitat, making exploration long-lasting. more feasible,” the authors report. The latter believe that operating in this way would limit the boredom of the crew, the stress and the levels of aggression associated with confinement in a module far from Earth.

(...)

https://trustmyscience.com/hibernation- ... spatiales/

[Christophe]

Lunar trees...I had never heard of them!

[GuyGadeboisTheBack]

Over the years, Dave Williams has tracked down these trees and to date has located about 100 across the United States. Among them, 30 died or were shot. From the outside, moon trees were no different from other trees. “There is nothing strange about moon trees,” says Dave Williams. The only difference with the other trees being that their seeds traveled through space and went into orbit around the moon.

Move along, there's nothing to see.

[gegyx]

Russia suspends launches from Kourou space base.
And uncertainties about the planned programs.

https://www.courrierinternational.com/a ... -de-kourou

[Christophe]

Boahh no big deal to take a break from star conquest…some corners of the Earth’s surface may soon be as bright and hot as a star

[Christophe]

That's very stupid, Curiosity's tires are worn prematurely: https://www.numerama.com/sciences/86106 ... pirer.html

curiosity-roues-27-janvier-2022.jpg (92.66 KiB) Viewed 895 times

[gegyx]

That's very stupid, Curiosity's tires are worn prematurely

27km...
It's not Chinese though, made of bamboo and tissue paper...



The structure will still hold. but the engine will struggle, or the wheels will spin.

[Christophe]

They must have forgotten to do tests in Martian conditions (atmosphere, temperature variations, solar radiation, etc.)

But now the tests are done... It will be used for the following rovers!

[izentrop]

A mysterious object has just crashed on the Moon https://fr.metrotime.be/insolite/un-mys ... lune-video