Astronauts’ hearts just passed a surprising test for Mars
A new study monitoring astronauts returning from the International Space Station found that their hearts adapted remarkably well to weightlessness and simulated Martian gravity. Daily intensive exercise appears to successfully protect cardiovascular health during long-duration space travel.
Why it matters
Provides crucial reassurance that human bodies can endure long-term space journeys and surface operations on Mars without severe cardiovascular degradation.
A journey to Mars may be less challenging for the human heart than scientists once feared. A new study suggests that astronauts can adapt remarkably well to months of weightlessness, offering encouraging evidence that humans could endure the long trip to the Red Planet and function under its weaker gravity.
Researchers from Northwestern Medicine, UT Southwestern, and UT Houston monitored the hearts of 13 astronauts who spent approximately six months aboard the International Space Station. Their findings showed that although spaceflight initially affected heart performance, the astronauts gradually adapted, with intensive daily exercise playing an important role in maintaining their cardiovascular health.
One of NASA's major concerns about sending humans to Mars is how astronauts' hearts and circulatory systems will respond when they leave the weightless conditions of spaceflight (known as microgravity) and encounter Martian gravity, which is only about one-third as strong as Earth's.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in