On Earth, maintaining a sleep schedule in line with the natural cycle of dawn and sunset is not always easy. And when he stepped onto the International Space Station (ISS), things became much more complicated.
This space station rotates around the Earth at high speeds, leading to space travelers on the ISS having to go through 16 sunsets and sunsets per day, a big challenge.
The form of sleep on the ISS is also very special. The astronauts cannot sit on their beds as if they were on Earth, instead they are forced to " sleep on the air" or hang on walls. This creates a major change in the way people approach sleep and requires innovative solutions to support them.
To meet the needs of cosmologists, scientists have made two important inventions.
First, a lamp that can synchronize with the circadian rhythm of each individual.
Second, it is a device placed in the ear that can assess sleep quality.
The term "biorhythm" refers to changes in emotions, physical fitness, and behavior that occur during a 24-hour cycle, in which the level of sleep and alertness of the individual plays an important role. This is called a "biological clock". Notably, these changes depend directly on the light that humans are exposed to every day, one of the sources of strong impact on the body's "biological clock".
The sun is the main source of signals that the human body uses to regulate its "biological clock" and exposure to daylight has a big impact on sleep schedules. This is the reason why less exposure to daylight can affect our sleep quality and is also the reason why waking up at sunrise makes people feel more refreshed.
The help of technology
For space travelers living on the ISS, experiencing multiple sunsets and sunsets each day requires a mobile solution to help the body regulate. The light developed by SAGA Space Architects was introduced to meet this need.
At this time, European Space Agency (ESA) space traveler Andreas Mogensen is living on the International Space Station (ISS) and is facing a challenging space environment. Thanks to the development of SAGA Space Architects, space traveler Mogensen hopes to have a better sleeping experience.
According to departments, Mr. Mogensen installed a special light inside his living space. This light will be bright red in the evening, simulating a peaceful sunset before going to bed. And in the morning, the light will turn green, creating a space similar to the morning sky.
The noteworthy thing here is that, in space, there is no concept of "sky" as we know it on Earth. The Space travelers on the ISS are covered in the darkness of the universe and our sky is at their feet.
Along with a special light, when Mogensen is asleep, the device in his ear (like a headphone) measures his brain waves. This provides important information about the quality of space travelers' sleep. The invention was developed by researchers from the University of Aarhus in Denmark. Previously, measuring brain waves in space often required the use of a large and bulky brain-powered helmet. However, for sleep research, using such a device will not bring effective results.
