How Aerial Travel and Cabin Pressure Adversely Affects the Human Body Essay

The idea of mankind croaking to the moon somewhat or other aras out side of the Earths rotate is mostly scientific. However, when astronauts remain in stead, having to re-balance the frame to suit little or no graveness comp atomic number 18d to the Earth could bring about many compounds to the personate. Scientists convey found that the era required for recovery depends on the cadence fagged in energy-gravity conditions. The unyieldinger one stays off of the Earths surface, the more reproach end be caused. Strictly speaking, even a trip in an Airplane would require safety precautions to minimize damage to the soundbox of this. For example, cabin pressure increased to maintain balance and block nip different to a lower pressure. This essay will make up of two atoms. The initiative will be of flight of steps make at h pinnulet the Earths hemisphere, and how to perhaps prevent damage to the body. The second, and longer section deals with space travel throug h with(predicate) Zero-gravity and effect of loadlessness on the body and the counter-measures to prevent damage to the body.Section 1, flight effects on the passengers, specific everyy dealing with cabin pressureAirplanes fly at the cruising altitude of more or less 33000 feet, or approximately 10000 meters. Because the cruising altitude has a cabin pressure lower than air pressure on ground or even under sea-level, the oxygen availability is less and gases within the body expand. This causes the oxygen saturation level of the railway line to reduce, which offer lead to dotty hypoxia, the reduced supply of oxygen to the tissues around the body. Due to the effects of hypoxia, alcoholic drink consumption would affect the brain much more than it would on Earth.As the aircraft makes its decent book binding to Earth, air must be all(prenominal)owed to flow into the lay of the ear to equalize pressure differences. Passengers often can feel this change in air pressure. People wi th ear, stab and sinus infections are ordinarily advised to head off flying because of these changes in air pressure.Air travel in airplanes has less thank 20% humidity. This causes discomfort to the eyes, mouth and nose only if does not risk the passengers health. This discomfort can be prevented by drinking liquids (water recommended) before and during the flight, and using skin moisturizers. excessively passengers with short-sightedness or long-sightedness are advised to wear eye-glasses rather than contact lenses during flight as the contact lenses may dry out. In pose to avoid de-hydration, passengers should drink non- alcoholic beverages.Section 2, how traveling through space affects humansAstronauts often experience Zero- Gravity during their travels through space. This zip gravity or micro gravity can bring about health continue to the body if astronauts remain in space for a long flow of time of time. It would be much healthier for cabals to live under mushy gra vity.In order to prevent any biological changes in the body when experiencing zero gravity, scientists recommend a force of artificial gravity equal to a third of the Earths level of gravity. However, scientists still havent research affects of artificial gravity on humans but they contend for a fact and in that location is an imbalance in the body imputable(p) to the shifts of gravity levels. Artificial gravity prevents physiological changes from occurring. In zero-gravity, the body deteriorates.It takes less muscle to move around, so afterwards a long period of time in space, muscles weaken so the body bends. Because there is no tension in space, muscles relax and after a while they cachexy as a result of disuse and eventually disappear. To prevent the cashier of bones, limbs and muscles, all space shuttles give the opportunity for astronauts to do rigorous exemplar every daylight to keep the muscles strong.Staying in Zero-gravity for months causes bones to lose mass and s ubscribe to th home(a), as they are not carrying any weight. This means astronauts must go through rigorous trainings in the spacecraft everyday in order to keep muscle and bone strength. When a great deal of the crews precious time in space is spent exercising rather than doing science, money and potential receiptledge are being senseless for the sake of health. It is a sacrifice, but a necessary one1In space, receptors in the inner ear allow humans to sense direction. In space, ear receptors dont receive the same cues and the mind casts used to ignoring the inner ears feelings about balance. Hand-eye coordination, posture and balance are all affected by the disorientation of the mind. When astronauts return to footing, they are often overwhelmed by dizziness and have difficulty in maintaining balance. An example of the mind adapting to the innovative gravity less surroundings would be with Shannon Lucid, who was on board the Russian space Station MIR for six months. The astr onaut said You just strain of get used to floating around but we also k the likes of a shot that floating around is not all that astronauts do- they must resist the effects of micro gravity on the body.Also, no gravity means no resistance from growing, so about astronauts return to earth some 6 inches taller than when they left. It is only after a few months that they grow down/ come down back to normal height. This is because of the unloading of spinal discs- because of privation of gravity, the discs in the rear are not holding up or don anything, so they tend to stretch rather than contract.Traveling through micro gravity causes bodily placids to shift from the lower body to the cephalic area (head), and so peoples faces tend to swell and become rounder than they are on earth. When the brain senses a higher amount of blood than usual, it interprets the stead that there is now an overall increase in the total saturation of unruffleds in the body. The brain responds by tri ggering the excretion of fluids, making astronauts prone to dehydration. Also, the fluid redistribution can shrink legs as the bones are weaker. These fluids pass through the kidneys, causing kidney filtration rate to increase, bone loss can cause Kidney stones. Fluids that get away the body include calcium loss and bone demineralization. The loss of blood plasma causes temporary Anemia upon the return to Earth. several(prenominal) crew members get space anemia. Scientists are concerned about the affects of catching this disease on over all crew performance. Blood volume may belittle by 10 percent.The increase of fluids in the head causes the same feeling as when one has a cold and feels blocked in. in space astronauts begin to lose their sense of taste, causing the craving for strong flavorings in the food such as horseradish, mustard and taco sauce. Fluid loss, lack of exercise and diminished appetite cause weight loss as astronauts tend not to eat as much as they would on eart h. Meals and exercise are planned to prevent excessive loss.Zero-gravity affects the cardio-vascular system. On earth we must cope with gravity, which sustains or slows down the blood-flow. In zero gravity, there is no gravity force, causing the heart to slow down due to the decreased demands of blood as it travels more freely.The immune system in the body is also affected by weightlessness. In space, one is open(a) to illness as the immune response lowers and numbers of anti-bodies decrease after a long exposure to micro gravity. Approximately half of all astronauts are affected by this unpleasant syndrome which affects nausea, headache, lethargy and sweating (taken from NASA sources). Also, minor effects of weightlessness on the body include puffiness in the face, flatulence, weight loss, nasal congestion and often sleeping disturbances.Upon returning to earth, recovery time depends on the duration of stay in space. Muscles are weak and the body is not used to gravity forces, (ca using them to feel dizzy) and so some astronauts are taken back in stretchers. This shows why astronauts need to be at the peak of fitness.If in the near future the human race would manakin space stations as tourist resorts, some would prefer hotels with zero-gravity and some would want partial gravity, which would bring about competition like hotels on earth, which would drive prices low. As gravity affects all biological, physical and chemical processes on earth, building an International Space Station gives new opportunity to choose a world without gravity and its affect on animals and other living organisms. Observing the weightlessness effect on these living organisms could teach scientists about biological processes on earth, such as aging and osteoporosis.In the end, we can see that human travel through space is safer under artificial gravity when compared to astronauts being exposed to weightlessness, micro gravity or zero gravity (all three mean the same). Most of the pr oblems mentioned such as fluid loss and muscle deterioration would not cause problems as long as the crew remained in a weightless environment. Remaining in a zero-gravity environment for over a long period of time could cause problems, however. In 1987, in the later stages of his 326-day mission, Russian Yuri Romanenko was fatigued both(prenominal) physically and mentally due to traveling through space. The majority of his day was spent sleeping regaining strength, in the meantime his bones were deteriorating. Some say if many like Romanenko stayed in space for much longer, he may not have survived re-entry to the Earth. Returning to Earth could cause problems as the body is much weaker due to demineralization and atrophy of the bones and famine of red blood cells. Ones balance must now again be readjusted causing many astronauts to feel dizzy when back to a strong g force gravity on earth.Whether or not the volumed amount of time and money spent on keeping astronauts fit during space flight is worth the scientific findings is debatable. physiological effects need to be prevented as much a possible. Again, this is ordinarily prevented by rigorous exercise and micro gravity could still be a danger to the astronauts health. Many scientists believe that the benefits of transporting/send out machines (robots) and humans to space, despite the health issues, are nothing compared to the commodious benefit that society will receive. Humans will not be perfectly suited to living in a weightless environment, but that wont stop Astrobiologists and many other research firms like NASA from exploring space. The many benefits of space exploration such as technological intimacy and inspiration easily outweigh the negative aspects.BibliographySources were from Newspapers, CDs, network sites and a large extract of a book in one of the web-pages. Most web sites accessed on the 11th December 2003 and 9th January 2004.1) http//library.thinkquest.org/C003763/index.php?page= adapt022) www.permanent.com/s-nograv.htm3) http//library.thinkquest.org/C003763/index.php%3fpage=adapt024) www.spacefuture.com/habitat/zerog.shtml5) http//mos.org/cst/article/77/6.html6) http//school.discovery.com/schooladventures/spacestation/basics/why.html7) www.relaxincomfort.com/zerogravity_benefits.html8) http//experts.about.com/q/2540/2677459.htm9) www.uclas.ac.uk/facs/science/physastr/courses/space/ssyear1/sc1201.htm10) http//www.who.int/ith/chapter02_01.html11) Definitions from Microsoft Encarta 2003 Premium Suite CD12) http//library.thinkquest.org/2606/Environmental_problems/water_pollution_-_effects.html (used for first idea of project)1 http//library.thinkquest.org/C003763/index.php%3fpage=adapt02