Explainer

An astronaut in a spacesuit explores a barren, eroded desert, resembling Martian terrain

Fifteen astronauts came home from missions averaging 188 days with shakier balance and slower two-hand work, while most tested cognition stayed steady and the clearest movement losses eased within about a month back on Earth

Fifteen astronauts who spent about six months in orbit returned with clear problems in balance, mobility and fine hand coordination, according to a Frontiers in Neural Circuits study. The same paper found that the tested cognitive measures stayed broadly stable, which narrows the main short-term concern after landing to movement control rather than a sweeping…

Astronaut navigation mission control training

Space Explainer

Sixteen astronauts grew slightly more accurate at a navigation task after 6 months aboard the ISS, even as scans showed less activity in brain regions tied to spatial orientation and pointed to a new way the brain adapts to weightlessness

Intricate MRI brain scan displayed on a computer screen for medical analysis and diagnosis

Space Explainer

Five astronauts carried resting-state brain recordings through long missions in orbit and the study found weaker alpha activity in a key resting network during flight, with some links still below preflight levels 20 days after landing

Side view of unrecognizable person in virtual reality helmet sitting on sofa and playing with gamepad in dark room

Humans Explainer

Sixty-five volunteers trained in a virtual reality stress program built for astronauts and the version that adjusted pressure every 30 seconds lowered heart rate while keeping people more engaged than fixed training

Oceans Explainer

College students who scored higher on ocean literacy in a survey of 1,206 students were more likely to report stronger pro-environmental behavior and the main psychological bridge ran through a growing sense of marine responsibility while personal values added a second path from knowledge to action

Space Explainer

Thirty-nine astronauts and cosmonauts who answered an anonymous post-flight survey said space left a lasting positive mark, with the clearest shift centered on Earth’s beauty and fragility, while mission count, background and time spent aloft did not explain the response pattern

Astronaut in a futuristic setting wearing a space suit, exploring a lit indoor environment

Space Explainer

Twenty astronaut-like volunteers across five simulated space missions spent 45 days under a 5-hour weekday sleep schedule and their vigilance kept slipping while fatigue ratings moved less and the models meant to forecast those lapses missed who would struggle most

Seafaring crew operating on deck of cargo ship amidst ocean, showcasing teamwork and maritime expertise

Health Explainer

Among 349 seafarers from 12 countries, poorer mental health was tied most closely to vibration, bullying, homesickness and illness, while family isolation, supervisor demands and cultural strain weighed most heavily on plans to leave the industry

Three groups of strain stood out when researchers asked seafarers which shipboard pressures were most closely linked with poorer mental health. In this survey, the strongest signals came from the physical environment, from social tension on board and from health problems, while several stressors that dominate public discussion of life at sea carried less weight…

Virtual reality session during deployment

Humans Explainer

Twenty-nine sailors tried beach and forest virtual reality during a 2-week voyage aboard a U.S. Navy warship and the scent-linked version cut negative affect right after each session even as longer-run gains in stress relief, presence and cognitive performance stayed limited

A two-week trial aboard a U.S. Navy warship asked a simple psychological question in a hard place to test it: can a brief virtual walk through nature steady mood when real nature is out of reach? The answer was modest but clear. Sailors who used an olfactory-enhanced version of the virtual reality system showed an…

A serene close-up of a hand gently touching a sparkling water surface under daylight

Humans Explainer

Ten healthy men were lowered to the neck into 18-degree-Celsius seawater and during the first two minutes their code-substitution scores fell by about 11 percent while oxygen demand rose 149 percent in a small crossover study about survival decisions at sea

Ten healthy men sat quietly in a lab, then slipped into water kept close to 18 C, a temperature that can feel manageable beside the Mediterranean shore. A pilot study found that within the first two minutes of that sudden immersion, their performance on a code-substitution task dropped by about 11 percent while their bodies…

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