Astronaut Muscles Waste In Space (Forwarded)

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August 18, 2010

Astronaut Muscles Waste In Space

Astronaut muscles waste away on long space flights and their ability to do
physical work is reduced by more than 40% according to research by Marquette
University professor Robert Fitts.

This is the equivalent of a 30- to 50-year-old crew member's muscles
deteriorating to that of an 80-year-old. The destructive effects of extended
weightlessness to skeletal muscle -- despite in-flight exercise -- pose a
significant safety risk for future manned missions to Mars and elsewhere in
the Universe.

The study was recently published online by The Journal of Physiology and
will be in the September printed issue. It comes at a time of renewed
interest in Mars and increased evidence of early life on the planet. NASA
currently estimates it would take a crew 10 months to reach Mars, with a 1
year stay, or a total mission of approximately 3 years.

Fitts, chair and professor of biological sciences at Marquette, believes if
astronauts were to travel to Mars today their ability to perform work would
be compromised and, with the most affected muscles such as the calf, the
decline could approach 50%. Crew members would fatigue more rapidly and have
difficulty performing even routine work in a space suit. Even more dangerous
would be their return to Earth, where they'd be physically incapable of
evacuating quickly in case of an emergency landing.

The study -- the first cellular analysis of the effects of long duration
space flight on human muscle -- took calf biopsies of nine astronauts and
cosmonauts before and immediately following 180 days on the International
Space Station (ISS). The findings show substantial loss of fiber mass, force
and power in this muscle group. Unfortunately starting the journey in better
physical condition did not help. Ironically, one of the study's findings was
that crew members who began with the biggest muscles also showed the
greatest decline.

The results highlight the need to design and test more effective exercise
countermeasures on the ISS before embarking on distant space journeys. New
exercise programs will need to employ high resistance and a wide variety of
motion to mimic the range occurring in Earth's atmosphere.

Fitts doesn't feel scientists should give up on extended space travel.
"Manned missions to Mars represent the next frontier, as the Western
Hemisphere of our planet was 800 years ago," says Fitts. "Without
exploration we will stagnate and fail to advance our understanding of the
Universe."

In the shorter term, Fitts believes efforts should be on fully utilizing the
International Space Station so that better methods to protect muscle and
bone can be developed. "NASA and ESA need to develop a vehicle to replace
the shuttle so that at least six crew members can stay on the ISS for 6-9
months," recommends Fitts. "Ideally, the vehicle should be able to dock at
the ISS for the duration of the mission so that, in an emergency, all crew
could evacuate the station."