The device developed by Brazilians helped monitor astronauts’ activities, especially sleep, which is often affected during space missions
In April, astronauts from NASAthe North American agency, reached the hidden side of Moon with the mission Artemis II. A curious fact is that a little piece of Brazil was also present on the space trip: the agents used technology developed by University of São Paulo (USP). The wristwatch allowed you to monitor your activities, providing information mainly about sleep.
USP at Artemis II
Created by researchers from the institution with support from Fapespthe technology was based on the actigraph, a device capable of tracking movements. With the adaptation of Brazilian scientists, however, the watch also began to record exposure to light and skin temperature. This information is fundamental to understanding human biological rhythms and how they are influenced by space.
“Our brain responds to the Earth’s rotation through the light-dark cycle. When a ship like that is in space, there is no such thing,” explained the teacher Mario Pedrazzoli Netoone of those responsible for the research, in a statement.
The result, as the specialist points out, is sleep dysregulation due to the lack of day and night reference, which can cause cognitive and motor failures. In this way, monitoring with technology, used even before the flight, allows us to understand the effects and help create more suitable conditions for rest in space. For example, with changes in the ship’s lighting.
In addition to space missions, the device’s developers believe it could reveal differences in rest between residents of small and large cities. Therefore, the planning for the next steps is to expand access to the watch. Its use in scientific research seeks to identify disorders and changes related to sleep, while in medicine, the device can assist doctors in making accurate diagnoses.
Source: www.bing.com
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