Gravitational effects on human cardiovascular responses to isometric muscle contractions.

Isometric exercise induces profound cardiovascular adaptations increasing mean arterial pressure and heart rate. We investigated effects of simulated +Gz and -Gz respectively on the central and peripheral cardiovascular system. Sustained handgrip exercise was performed at 40% of maximum for 2 minutes in five subjects. This maneuver increased mean arterial pressure by 40-45 mm Hg both during head out water immersion which simulates weightlessness, as well as bedrest during -25, 0, and +25 degrees tilt from the horizontal. Lower body negative pressure (-60 mm Hg for 10 min) attenuated the response to handgrip exercise to 30 mm Hg. It also increased the heart rate minimally by about 20 beats per minute while the water immersion, as well as head up, head down and horizontal bedrest showed increments of about 50 beats per min. It was concluded that the response to isometric contraction is mediated through the high pressure baroreceptors, because similar responses were seen during stresses producing a wide variation in central venous pressure. During lower body negative pressure the increased sympathetic nervous activity itself increased resting heart rate and mean arterial pressure. The responses to static exercise were, therefore, weaker.     

Developments in high-precision gamma-ray burst source studies

The first interplanetary gamma-ray burst spacecraft network is making possible the precise determination of gamma-ray burst source locations. This network is an international cooperation involving the Helios-2, Pioneer Venus, Venera-11, Venera-12, ISEE-3 and Prognoz-7 spacecraft. The celestial regions that have been defined, with one exception, have no correlations either to known x-ray emitters or to steady optical counterparts, to ～ 22nd mag. The event of 1979 March 5 has a very small source field located within the contour of the supernova remnant N49 in the LMC; the possibility of this measurement as a source identification, the 55 kpc distance of N49 as opposed to the nearby source distances assumed for typical bursts, and the very different characteristics of this event, however, are three arguments for its separate classification. The recent identification of an archived, 50-year old, optical transient within the high-precision source field of a typical burst [1] suggests both that events may repeat and that sources may be localized with even greater accuracy optically.This review outlines the precise source location data being produced by the first and the second spacecraft networks, the possibilities of additional networks and of related studies in other disciplines, and the prospects both for real-time optical transient observations and for the definition of gamma-ray burst sources by optical transient astronomy.     

Two-dimensional convection in liquid layer related to crystal growth techniques in space

In this paper, the Marangoni convection including buoyancy convection in two-dimensional fluid model was investigated experimentally and theoretically. The transparent liquid in the test cell was heated and cooled under various conditions. The fluid flow driven by surface tension and by buoyancy force was visualized and measured. The flow patterns, velocity distributions and temperature field were obtained and they were compared with the results of the numerical solutions. The effect of the configuration and the convection in microgravity on crystal growth was discussed. The temperature field of the crystallizing surface was predicted.     

Exposure of animals to artificial gravity conditions leads to the alteration of the glutamate release from rat cerebral hemispheres nerve terminals.

The biochemical basis underlying the effects of altered gravity on the process of nervous signal transmission is not clear. We have investigated the effect of hypergravity stress (created by centrifugation of rats at l0 g for 1 h) on the basal and stimulated release of L-[14C]glutamate (a chemical transmitter of excitatory signals) from isolated rat brain nerve terminals (synaptosomes). It has been shown that the hypergravity stress exerted a different influence on the Ca(2+)-dependent and the Ca(2+)-independent component of neurotransmitter release. The Ca(2+)-dependent L-[14C]glutamate release evoked by potassium chloride was equal to 14.4 +/- 0.7% of total synaptosomal label for control animals and 6.2 +/- 1.9% for animals, exposed to hypergravity (P < or = 0.05) and was more than twice decreased as a result of the hypergravity stress. We observed no statistically significant difference in the Ca(2+)-independent component of L-[14C]glutamate release. For control group and animals exposed to the hypergravity stress it was equal to 7.7 +/- 2.8% and 12.9 +/- 2.0%, respectively. We have also investigated the effect of the hypergravity stress on the activity of high-affinity Na(+)-dependent glutamate transporters. Km and Vmax of L-[14C]glutamate uptake have been determined. The maximal velocity of glutamate uptake was decreased as a result of hypergravity loading, but no difference in the Km values between control rats and hypergravity exposed animals was observed. These findings indicate that hypergravity stress alters neurotransmitter reuptake and exocytotic neurotransmitter release processes.     

Hematopoietic responses under protracted exposures to low daily dose gamma irradiation.

In attempting to evaluate the possible health consequences of chronic ionizing radiation exposure during extended space travel (e.g., Mars Mission), ground-based experimental studies of the clinical and pathological responses of canines under low daily doses of 60Co gamma irradiation (0.3-26.3 cGy d-1) have been examined. Specific reference was given to responses of the blood forming system. Results suggest that the daily dose rate of 7.5 cGy d-1 represents a threshold below which the hematopoietic system can retain either partial or full trilineal cell-producing capacity (erythropoiesis, myelopoiesis, and megakaryopoiesis) for extended periods of exposure (>1 yr). Trilineal capacity was fully retained for several years of exposure at the lowest dose-rate tested (0.3 cGy d-1) but was completely lost within several hundred days at the highest dose-rate (26.3 cGy d-1). Retention of hematopoietic capacity under chronic exposure has been demonstrated to be mediated by hematopoietic progenitors with acquired radioresistance and repair functions, altered cytogenetics, and cell-cycle characteristics. Radiological, biological, and temporal parameters responsible for these vital acquisitions by hematopoietic progenitors have been partially characterized. These parameters, along with threshold responses, are described and discussed in relation to potential health risks of the space traveler under chronic stress of low-dose irradiation.     

Relay balloon

A relay balloon system for long-duration or large-area observations is described. The system consists of a balloon for scientific observations and a relay balloon for a data-relay terminal between a ground station and the balloon for observation. The system was successfully applied to the observation of electric-power fields (50 and 60 Hz) over the Pacific ocean. The maiximum distance between two balloons was about 1100 km and that between the Sanriku Balloon Center and the main balloon for the observation was about 1300 km.     

An imaging telescope for high energy gamma-ray astronomy

Recent tests of a γ-ray imaging telescope, which incorporated a coded aperture mask and multi-wire proportional counter system produced good images of a tritium target source which was used to generate the 20 MeV protons at a proton Van de Graaff accelerator. This paper indicates what performance one might expect if a large area drift chamber were used in conjunction with a coded aperture mask. The prospects for achieving significant scientific results if such a system were flown on a variety of space vehicles are discussed.     

Landsat analysis of the Yangjiatan tungsten district,Hunan Province,People's Republic of China

The Yangjiatan tungsten district at latitude 27°28′ N. and longitude 111°54′E. is located about 140 km southwest of the city of Changsha and 35 km northeast of the town of Shaoyang, southeast Hunan Province, People's Republic of China. The deposits, consisting largely of scheelite in veins (Wang, 1975), are contained in highly folded and faulted sedimentary rocks of Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic age intruded by granitic plutons that are circular in plan view. The major faults and folds trend in a northeasterly direction; whereas, the plutons are clustered in a more easterly trending band across the Landsat image.Landsat image E-2338-02202, acquired December 26, 1975, is number 470 in the “Landsat Image Atlas of the People's Republic of China” printed by the Publishing House of Geology in 1979. A computer-compatible tape of the image was analyzed and used as a demonstration project under a United Nations technical assistance program. Supervised classification of soils, rocks, and vegetation; band ratioing to detect limonite alteration; and edge enhancement were all conducted to demonstrate the flexibility and capability of interactive computer systems. Field evaluation of the results of this work will be conducted by colleagues of the Remote Sensing Center for Geology, Ministry of Geology, in China.     

Late skin damage in rabbits and monkeys after exposure to particulate radiations.

Skin biopsies were taken from the central regions of the ears of New Zealand white rabbits following localized exposure of one ear of each rabbit to 530 MeV/amu Ar or 365 MeV/amu Ne ions. The unirradiated ears served as controls. Biopsies were taken also from the chests and inner thighs of rhesus monkeys after whole-body exposure to 32 MeV protons and from unirradiated control animals. The linear energy transfers (LET infinity's) for the radiations were 90 +/- 5, 35 +/- 3, and approximately 1.2 keV/micrometer, respectively. In the rabbit studies, explants were removed with a 2 mm diameter dermal punch at post-irradiation times up to five years after exposure. Similar volumes of monkey tissue were taken from skin samples excised surgically 16-18 years following proton irradiation. Fibroblast cultures were initiated from the explants and were propagated in vitro until terminal senescence (cessation of cell division) occurred. Cultures from irradiated tissue exhibited decreases in doubling potential that were dependent on radiation dose and LET infinity and seemed to reflect damage to stem cell populations. The implications of these results for astronauts exposed to heavy ions and/or protons in space include possible manifestations of residual effects in the skin many years after exposure (e.g. unsatisfactory responses to trauma or surgery).