Space

Orbital science, astronomy, remote sensing, and what lies beyond the atmosphere.

Five analog astronauts spent seven days inside a Moon-like habitat and finished with higher cortisol plus rising oxidative stress as sleep and circadian rhythms came under strain

The hidden strain of a simulated lunar mission appeared in saliva, urine and sleep records within a single week. Five young crew members living in a sealed Moon-like habitat developed higher levels of cell-damaging chemicals and the stress hormone cortisol as their sleep became shorter and less restful. The findings come from a peer-reviewed study…

A mesmerizing view of Earth as seen from a space station with solar panels and satellite modules

Space Explainer

ISS cosmonauts spoke to Mission Control more than twice as much during heavy workloads, while negative emotion signals rose fivefold across 164,658 statements, suggesting that long missions may require stronger support from the ground

Image of the International Space Station floating above Earth with visible solar panels

Space Explainer

Seven astronauts spent an average of 168 days on the ISS and their sense of upright grew noisier after landing while their reliance on visual cues stayed reduced for an average of 130 more days, showing that the brain can keep recalibrating for months after microgravity

A SpaceX satellite hovering over Earth's horizon in outer space, showcasing advanced space technology

Space Explainer

Five Mir crew members logged 256 nights across missions lasting about six months and the record showed an extra hour of wakefulness in orbit while REM sleep recovered over time by taking time away from non-REM sleep

Astronaut in space suit standing on red rocky terrain resembling Mars' surface

Space Explainer

BASALT crews simulating Mars EVAs spent about 4.6 minutes writing each delayed reply, exchanged the heaviest text traffic between minutes 50 and 150 and saw the message stream thin out after minute 200 when sample collection left less room for Earth to steer field decisions

Civilian astronaut looking back at Earth from orbit

Space Explainer

Four civilians spent only 3 days in orbit, yet NASA’s 10-test cognition battery found slower responses on four tasks, lower accuracy on three and an early in-flight deficit that was driven largely by astronaut C002

Astronaut working with spacecraft systems

Space Explainer

Fifteen astronauts spent about 6 months in orbit and returned with steady working-memory scores, while brain scans showed their visual task networks had been reorganized to keep the same answers coming

Astronaut in spacesuit climbing ladder inside a dark setting

Space Statistics

Astronauts slept less than six hours before 41 of 80 spacewalks, while about three quarters of reporting crews used sleep medication in orbit and researchers found the short nights were already common months before launch on shuttle and ISS missions

Astronaut sleep looked thin long before launch and stayed thin in orbit in a 2014 study that tracked crews on both space shuttle missions and the International Space Station. Researchers followed 64 astronauts across 80 shuttle missions and 21 astronauts across 13 ISS missions, then compared sleep in flight with sleep during preflight training and…

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

Space Explainer

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

Sixteen astronauts spent about 6 months aboard the International Space Station, came back to Earth and then showed a surprising mix of changes during a navigation test. Their performance edged upward on the task, yet their brains used less activity in several regions that usually help people keep track of position and direction. The result…

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