Space
trips to the other planets would require months of travel through the vacuum of space. Maintaining the crew’s health is a vital concern. If the crew could be induced to hibernate, the problems of survival become easier to solve.
Hibernation is a type of torpor, or reduced metabolism caused by hypothermia. Unlike in cryogenics, the body does not actually freeze. A 10 degree drop in body temperature reduces metabolic rate by 50 to 70 percent.
Incredible Technology: How Astronauts Could Hibernate On Mars Voyage
Hibernation solves a variety of problems connected to deep-space travel:
Dormant astronauts would be immobilized in special hibernation capsules, and would not need pressurized living space or artificially generated gravity. [Video: How Astronauts Sleep]
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