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Encyclopedia of Bioastronautics pp 1–9Cite as

Physiological Effects of Spaceflight – Weightlessness: An Overview

Definitions

The term “space physiology” means how bodily functions adapt to the environment of spaceflight, and how these adaptations affect performance and health. Thus, space physiology is a subdiscipline of “space biology” and encompasses how the systems of the body are affected by the spaceflight environment from the level of molecular interactions in the cells up to the integrated bodily functions. The spaceflight environmental factors that affect physiology and health are several of which weightlessness (microgravity) is dominant in low Earth orbit.

An object is weightless when it is not subjected to any external mechanical forces. A mechanical force is a force whereby an object accelerates another object through contact between their surfaces. This force is also referred to as the surface force or normal force. According to this definition, an object not subjected to any forces at all or only to gravitational forces without any intervening surface forces is weightless. Thus, a...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Space Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA

    Peter Norsk

  2. Biomedical Research & Environmental Sciences Division, NASA, Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA

    Peter Norsk

Authors
  1. Peter Norsk
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Peter Norsk .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Room 37-219, Massachusetts Institute of Technolo Room 37-219, CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, USA

    Laurence R. Young

  2. Center for Space Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine Center for Space Medicine, HOUSTON, Texas, USA

    Jeffrey P. Sutton

Section Editor information

  1. Division of Space Life Sciences, USRA, Houston, Texas, USA

    Peter Norsk

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Norsk, P. (2018). Physiological Effects of Spaceflight – Weightlessness: An Overview. In: Young, L., Sutton, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Bioastronautics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_126-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_126-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-10152-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-10152-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference EngineeringReference Module Computer Science and Engineering

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Physiological Effects of Spaceflight – Weightlessness: An Overview
    Published:
    22 December 2020

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_126-2

  2. Original

    Physiological Effects of Spaceflight – Weightlessness: An Overview
    Published:
    16 April 2018

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_126-1

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