With the development of global aerospace technology, it is not difficult for mankind to enter the space to explore the mysteries of the universe. However, our technical means are still very limited. It is not possible to determine the real situation through some detectors, and sometimes requires some astronauts’ efforts to enable us to understand the mysteries of the universe more accurately. Although many astronauts have entered into space nowadays, a large number of factual studies have shown that the environment in space can cause some harm to the human body. There was a survey of data that showed that after 11 astronauts returned to Earth from space, their brains experienced varying degrees of shrinkage and disease. What did they experience in space?
First of all, for human beings, we all know that there is gravity when living on the earth. However, in space, human beings are completely weightless, which requires very high physical fitness and other aspects of astronauts. Before most astronauts enter space, they have to go through a long period of special training and go through layers of selection. However, for these great astronauts, their spirit is very admirable. When they return to Earth from space, they will be admired by everyone, but there will also be certain risks for them.
A study found that the brains of astronauts flying in a universe without gravity for a long time will have certain changes. This is because without gravity, the distribution of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain will change to a certain extent, which will affect the blood supply to the brain, which will also change the overall shape and operation of the brain. In an article published on September 4, 2020, a detailed explanation was made on the changes in the macroscopic and microscopic structures of the brains of astronauts who have been flying for a long time. We can also imagine that the astronauts who have been working on the space station for a long time will suffer from the effects of weightlessness that we cannot imagine.
In addition to being in a state of weightlessness, there are also cosmic rays in the universe, which may have a certain impact on the human body, and some people even think that it will change the human DNA. And once there was such a rumor in the international arena that women who are unmarried and have no children are forbidden to go to space. However, in fact, there are many examples that prove that such a statement is not valid. For example, Valentina Tereshkova, the world’s first female astronaut, can prove this. In addition, my country’s female astronaut Liu Yang also returned from space. Give birth only afterwards. So it can be seen that the rumors in this area are not based on facts, but we cannot deny that space flight will still cause some harm to astronauts.
In a study published by scientists at the University of Michigan, it was pointed out that space flight has a relatively large impact and changes on the brain structure of astronauts. He used some astronauts who have been to space as experimental subjects. These astronauts spent different times in space. Some stayed on the International Space Station for up to 6 months, but some only had two weeks. However, the results of their brain MRI showed that the gray matter, which is responsible for the key functions of muscles to control memory, emotions and sensations, has increased or decreased in volume to varying degrees, and in this state of weightlessness, The influence of human brain structure has received widespread attention.
Nowadays, people are not particularly in-depth on the impact of the space environment on the brain structure of astronauts, and there are no exact data and theories for their coping methods. However, the doctoral students and research team of an aerospace laboratory in Belgium studied and compared the brain conditions of the 11 crews before and after they entered the space flight. They found that they were in a weightless environment for a long time. After returning to the earth, it will take some time. Only then can we re-adapt to the gravity of the earth and restore our body to normal conditions. The decrease in the volume of gray matter in the brain may be due to the change in the distribution of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain of astronauts in a state of weightlessness, which will cause some astronauts to have blurred vision after returning to Earth.
And studies have proved that in addition to changes in human structure, some genetic material will also mutate. When some astronauts who returned from space performed MRI, the results showed that the central sulcus of the brain began to gradually become smaller, which would affect their memory and mental agility. In addition, the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid was abnormal. Therefore, the blood supply to the brain will be affected. In this way, people may experience accelerated physical aging, slow response, and so on. But after the astronaut returns to the earth, whether the brain will shrink obviously, it cannot be denied absolutely.
It can be seen that it is unimaginable for these astronauts to experience us in space. Long-term exposure to such a weightless environment has caused such changes in their bodies. Scientists believe that the longer you stay in space, the greater the chance of disease. Due to the abnormal increase in blood flow in the blood brain and the change in their circulation, the volume of cerebrospinal fluid will increase and then the retinal nerve will be compressed, resulting in retinal hemorrhage. In addition, the intracranial pressure also increases, so the pituitary gland will shrink. It can be seen that flying in space may cause a certain change in human DNA. In addition, in a long-term non-gravity environment, human physiological structure may also have certain changes.
For astronauts, the current level of technology cannot completely avoid such risks for them, but I believe that with the advancement of technology, people will certainly have better protective measures to mitigate these injuries.