Physiological, Environmental and Operational Risk Factors for Crews and Passengers of Future Commercial Space Vehicles

This presentation will discuss a number of physiological,operational, and environmental risk factors (actual and potential) for the occupants of commercial space vehicles. Actual risks include exposure to: 1) High acceleration of flight profiles, 2) Decreased barometric pressure, 3) Microgravity, 4) Solar and galactic cosmic radiation, 4) Noise and vibration. Of particular concern are the effects of exposure (short-term and long-term) to microgravity on the cardiovascular, neurological, endocrinological, muscleskeletal, and gastro-intestinal systems, among healthy and diseased passengers. Furthermore, U.S. and Russian experience regarding space physiology and medicine involve short-term and long-term space flights but does not address the effects of: 1) Frequent repetitive exposure (several times a week) to flight profiles involving: normal gravity (pre-flight) - acceleration (launch/take off) - microgravity (space) - deceleration (return) - normal gravity (post-flight), 2) Frequent repetitive exposure to solar and cosmic radiation, and 3) Exposure to microgravity among individuals who have medical pathology. Other potential risk factors include unexpected exposure to: temperature extremes, in-flight cabin fire, cabin air contaminates, electricity, non-ionizing radiation, mechanical hazards, impact forces during crash landings, post-crash fire, emergency evacuation, and post-evacuation survival.https://commons.und.edu/ss-colloquium/1006/thumbnail.jp