12 Men Will Continually Lay In Bed For 60 Days For An Experiment
On September 9th, twelve men will lie down in a German spaceflight laboratory and have to remain lying down for almost every minute of the next 60 days. They’ll have almost no privacy. The beds will be inclined at six degrees, with their heads being lower than their feet and at least one shoulder must remain in contact with the bed at all times. One can only wonder how this will affect their digestion and their sanity.
Scientists will have them do a “horizontal jumping exercise” to see whether it helps the men to keep more muscle mass. Astronauts suffer problems during space flight that are similar to the effects of being bedridden. The purpose of the experiment is to explore how the effects of a very long space voyage upon the human body could be mitigated.
Softpedia News reported that scientists from the European Space Agency will be measuring the volunteers to check for bone and muscle loss. The men will have their blood flow and cardiovascular health monitored closely as well. The European Space Agency conducts several of these bed rest studies every year, for both men and women. They might even have a bed available for you.
