Space travel: Why astro-snoozers seldom snore.

by Photo courtesy of NASA SLEEPY TIME
Astronaut Norm Thagard takes an uncomfortable nap aboard the Russian Mir Space Station in 1995.
Photo courtesy of NASA

Although they may have other talents, few astronauts are much good at sleeping in space. NASA researchers have been studying the problem by hooking up space shuttle crews to all sorts of sleep-monitoring devices. The mystery remains unsolved, but one surprising discovery has been made: There's virtually no snoring in space.


G. Kim Prisk, a medical professor at the University of California, San Diego, explains that earthly snoring occurs when "gravity pulls the tongue and soft tissues in the rear of your mouth backward. If your airway is partially closed, you get these tissues flapping." In space, the body's fluids move toward the head, says Prisk, "so you'd expect their throats would swell and obstruct their breathing. But that doesn't happen. Whatever it is that makes them lose sleep, it's not upper airway obstruction."



Researchers now suspect the answer may lie in the astronauts' circadian rhythms, or other brain activities.

Want to learn more about breakthroughs in electronics, medicine, nanotech, and more?
Subscribe to Popular Science today, for less than $1 per issue!

1 Comment

www.sodfah.com

www.sodfah.com/vb

www.sodfah.com/up


138 years of Popular Science at your fingertips.

Innovation Challenges



Popular Science+ For iPad

Each issue has been completely reimagined for your iPad. See our amazing new vision for magazines that goes far beyond the printed page



Download Our App

Stay up to date on the latest news of the future of science and technology from your iPhone or Android phone with full articles, images and offline viewing



Follow Us On Twitter

Featuring every article from the magazine and website, plus links from around the Web. Also see our PopSci DIY feed


February 2012: The Future of Fun

Science is reinventing play, from extreme sports to gamification to ridiculous roller coasters to the playgrounds of tomorrow, and this issue is chock full of fun. Also, on a less fun note: Did global warming destroy my hometown?


circ-top-header.gif
circ-cover.gif