Movement in Microgravity

@ modified Boeing-727 over Portsmouth, New Hampshire, USA

In collaboration with:
Space Exploration Initiative
MIT Media Lab
Zero-G

In the microgravity environment, the body undergoes a series of adaptive changes. The proprioceptive system, responsible for the awareness and coordination of our body, is heavily reliant on gravity signals. Past research has shown proprioceptive changes in microgravity, but there are still gaps in 1) characterizing these changes and 2) understanding their functional impacts for spaceflight operations.

In lunar (1/6), martian (1/3), and micro (0) gravity, whole-body movement was recorded using accelerometers built into a custom prototyping breadboard. All components were sewn into a soft wearable garment, allowing a portable, mobile, and self-contained measuring system that flourishes in chaotic environments. Contrasted with state-of-the-art motion capture systems which rely on empty rooms, clear sightlines, and the assumption of a constant gravity vector, this custom-designed system proved to be a low-cost alternative to capturing joint dynamics in parabolic flight.

Whole-body functional movements are relatively understudied in the microgravity context, with researchers preferring limbs and isolated movements due to their experimental and interpretative simplicity. However, functional movements - such a translation to a target, the focus of this study - are critical in nominal and contingency scenarios. With commercial spaceflight gaining in popularity, passengers who have had little microgravity exposure will be expected to perform translation tasks in confined spaces with several others. Proprioceptive maladaptation to microgravity is a risk to passengers and equipment alike. Inpired by biomechanics and ballet, we proposed utilizing the metric of ‘fluidity’ based on joint mechanics theory to quantify and assess the quality of movement throughout partial gravity exposure.

This was the topic of my Master’s thesis in Aeronautics and Astronautics. You can download my thesis here.

(images 2-7 credits to Steve Boxall)