Next in NASA ’s path to Mars: Overcoming astronauts’ cognitive and mental health challenges

– Illustration by Zoë Van Dijk Space Between the Ears (Cerebrum): A few short months ago, news programs around the globe showed NASA engineers and scientists celebrating as a robot named Perseverance successfully landed on the surface of Mars. The mission: capture and share images and audio that have never been seen or heard before. As impressed as most observers were of this major milestone, many couldn’t help but wonder when we might be ready to someday send humans. While it seems the stuff of science fiction and almost inconceivable, the answer—according to recent NASA planning—is before the end of the 2030s, less than two decades away. There are still many obstacles to accomplishing such a feat, many of which have to do with overcoming cognitive and mental health challenges that would impact a crew: long-term isolation, eyesight impairment, and psychological effects from the stress of danger and what could amount to life-or-death decisions. For a mission to succeed, high mental and cognitive function would be absolutely critical; astronauts would be called on to perform demanding tasks in a demanding environment. Losing 20 IQ points halfway to Mars is not an option … Stress—an emotional or mental state resulting from tense or overwhelming circumstances—and the body’s response to it, which involves multiple systems, from metabolism to muscles to memory—may be the chief challenge that astronauts face. Spaceflight is full of stressors, many of which can ha...
Source: SharpBrains - Category: Neuroscience Authors: Tags: Brain/ Mental Health Peak Performance Artemis astronauts brain-function brain-teaser cognitive cognitive-performance Gateway MaRS mental capacities mental health challenges NASA spaceflight Stress stressors Source Type: blogs