NASA: Astronauts Going to Mars May Be in Deep Sleep

During interplanetary transit, the crew would receive low-level electrical impulses to key muscle groups to prevent muscular atrophy.

By Irene Klotz

A NASA-backed study explores an innovative way to dramatically cut the cost of a human expedition to Mars -- put the crew in stasis.

The deep sleep, called torpor, would reduce astronauts’ metabolic functions with existing medical procedures. Torpor also can occur naturally in cases of hypothermia.

“Therapeutic torpor has been around in theory since the 1980s and really since 2003 has been a staple for critical care trauma patients in hospitals," aerospace engineer Mark Schaffer, with SpaceWorks Enterprises in Atlanta, said at the International Astronomical Congress in Toronto this week.

More - Link >>> http://news.discovery.com/space/nasa-eyes-crew-deep-sleep-option-for-mission-to-mars-141003.htm

Source: Discovery Channel.

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