Sunday, November 30, 2008

Not just an earthly problem!


Not that sleep-deprivation is the biggest danger to astronauts in space, this article includes some interesting sleep related facts:

  • Nearly half of the medications the astronauts take with them are sleep aids
  • Light sensitive cells in the eye use light to regulate the hormone melatonin, which in turn regulates our sleep-wake cycles, which is something that could also be used to help astronauts keep a sleep cycle
Mistakes made due to sleep deprivation could have even greater consequences in space so this is a big issue for NASA. Makes me wonder if the loss of that $100,000 tool bag recently was in part caused by astronaut fatigue. You can track its progress here.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

It is amazing how sleep is so important, and many people put it on the back burner. I too have problems sleeping and I've started to track my ups and downs at http://www.sleepnotebook.com . Good luck in your sleep!