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| Spatial Reorientation Following Spaceflight |
| DSO 635 |
| Overview |
| Spatial orientation is altered during and after spaceflight by a shift of central vestibular processing (from a gravitational frame-of-reference to an internal, head-centered frame-of-reference) that occurs during adaptation to microgravity and is reversed during the first few days after return to Earth. Discordant sensory stimuli during the postflight readaptive period will temporarily disorient/destabilize the subject by triggering a shift (state change) to the previously learned, internally referenced, microgravity-adapted pattern of spatial orientation and sensorimotor control. |
| History/Background |
| The purpose of this DSO is to examine both the adaptive changes in the spatial reference frame used for coding spatial orientation and sensorimotor control as well as the fragility of the adaptive process and the feasibility of driving state changes in central vestibular processing via discordant sensory stimuli using balance control tests and eye movement responses to pitch-axis rotation in a short-arm centrifuge. The findings are expected to demonstrate the degree to which challenging motion environments may affect postflight readaptation and lead to a better understanding of safe postflight activity regimens. The findings are also expected to demonstrate the feasibility of triggering state changes between sensorimotor control sets using a centrifuge device. |
Editorial/Technical Comments: ShuttlePresskit
