Re: spacesickness (was Re: NASA HONORS LEGENDARY ASTRONAUT VANCE BRAND)

In article <1137557375.008128.189650@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
j.halpenny@xxxxxxxxxx <j.halpenny@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>> Once you've gotten over spacesickness, you don't get it again on that
>> flight, no matter what you're doing. But this immunity doesn't last once
>> you're back in gravity...
>
>Is space sickness significantly different from sea or air sickness
>that many people have?

It doesn't seem to be quite the same thing, although the symptoms are
similar. In particular, susceptibility to earthly forms of motion
sickness does *not* predict susceptibility to spacesickness. In fact,
there is still no way of predicting who will get (seriously) sick in space
and who won't, and it's not because people haven't been looking for one.

(Back in Apollo days, it was thought that getting in a plane and doing
vigorous aerobatics in the days immediately preceding launch reduced your
susceptibility somewhat, but I don't know how well that has held up.)

>I have been involved in ship surveys and small
>aircraft, and am usually quite ill for the first week, and fine
>afterward. Many others report the same thing.

Spacesickness usually lasts only 2-3 days, although for some unfortunates
it does persist longer.

>One way to overcome aircraft sickness is to do the flying yourself. I
>was once on a bumpy flight where one fellow was so violently sick that
>the pilot gave him the controls and he recovered nicely - and made the
>rest of us worse. Is there any way to 'pilot' a spacecraft so you feel
>you are in control?

There isn't that same sort of constantly attention-demanding piloting.
That happens only briefly during rendezvous maneuvers and such, which
usually aren't done immediately after launch.
--
spsystems.net is temporarily off the air; | Henry Spencer
mail to henry at zoo.utoronto.ca instead. | henry@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
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