Enhancing Astronaut Senses for Overcoming Spatial Disorientation
During Spaceflight
Is it possible that astronauts could lose their sense of orientation when landing on the surface of the Moon or when flying above the Earth? When spatial disorientation occurs, this lack of orientation can have serious consequences, including fatal accidents. This is especially concerning during spaceflight, as the otoliths in the inner ear that help maintain balance don’t function as intended on Earth. As a result, recent data from 1993 to 2013 revealed 65 aircraft losses, 101 deaths, and US$2.32 billion in damages due to spatial disorientation.
Given these risks, researchers including myself, Vivekanand Pandey Vimal, in partnership with Alexander Panic, James Lackner, and Paul DiZio at Brandeis University’s Ashton Graybiel Spatial Orientation Lab, are exploring how to enhance astronauts’ senses. Our research focuses on sensory augmentation and spatial disorientation that affects spatial navigators such as astronauts and pilots.
In a study recently published in Frontiers in Physiology, we investigated whether vibrotactors, vibrating devices applied to the skin, could help participants improve their performance while being disoriented in a simulated spaceflight situation. We also explored what kind of training would be effective in connecting humans with the aid of the device. While vibrotactors have aided pilots in flying helicopters and airplanes, we wanted to understand their potential use in spaceflight applications.
In this research, we carried out experiments to gauge the benefits of utilizing vibrotactors to mitigate disorientation resulting from spaceflight conditions. Participants experienced a spaceflight analog situation by maneuvering inside a multi-axis rotation device that mimicked the effects of gravitational transitions during spaceflight scenarios. These scenarios were then tested against an Earth analog condition to measure the impact of gravity on orientation.
Ultimately, through this study, we determined that vibrotactile feedback improved performance in spaceflight simulations, although participants still faced conflicts between their misperceptions and the influence of the vibrotactors. Consequently, we concluded that cognitive trust, or known levels of reliance on the device, doesn’t necessarily guarantee that individuals will rely on it when disoriented. This demands further research and exploration for the development of effective training solutions. To that end, we found that providing specialized training enabled participants to perform considerably better in the spaceflight analog condition, underscoring the need for customized training when astronauts’ sensory information significantly differs from that on Earth.
Overall, our findings strongly suggest the need for specialized training that will allow astronauts to disengage from their natural sensorial perceptions and adapt and rely on sensory augmentation devices when navigating under unfamiliar conditions, such as those experienced during space exploration.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Vivekanand Pandey Vimal, Brandeis University, has received financial support from NASA’s Human Research Program under grant 80NSSC22K0758.
