Ask an Aquanaut: Zero Gravity Study
MICHAEL C.GRANT/SCIENTIST/EDUCATOR asks: I am a research scientist/educator/certified diver. ABOUT 5MOS AGO, I BEGAN FORMULATING A HYPOTHESIS WHICH MAY RESOLVE THE PROBLEMS WITH BONE DENSITY DIMINUATION DURING LONG TERM SPACE FLIGHT.QUESTION:CAN NEEMO PROVIDE A TEMPLATIVE NEGATIVE OR ZERO GRAVITY ENVIRONMENT, WHICH WOULD ALLOW ME TO TEST MY HYPOTHESIS?
Dear Michael
Aquarius and the NEEMO type mission is probably not what you are looking for as the conditions the aquanauts live in are different than zero or negative gravity, they live in a higher pressure environment versus lower pressure, with gravity in the habitat and working in the water actually uses quite a bit of muscle strength - thus the issues with muscles and I suspect bone density are not analagous.
That said, stay tuned for our next NEEMO mission in 2008 and when we have a NASA expert on site, maybe he or she can answer a related question for you.
Dr. Ellen Prager
Chief Scientist, Aquarius Reef Base
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