A visual problem affecting astronauts who serve on lengthy missions in space is related to volume changes in the clear fluid that is found around the brain and spinal cord, according to new research being presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
Over the last decade, flight surgeons and scientists at NASA began seeing a pattern of visual impairment in astronauts who flew long-duration space missions. The astronauts had blurry vision, and further testing revealed, among several other structural changes, flattening at the back of their eyeballs and inflammation of the head of their optic nerves. The syndrome, known as visual impairment intracranial pressure (VIIP), was reported in nearly two-thirds of astronauts after long-duration missions aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
This is but one of many serious physiological problems associated with long duration human space travel in weightless conditions. To read more, click here.