The space center is looking for 12 candidates who would be willing to spend 60 days in bed, writes euronews.com.
Long periods in space can impair sensory perception and motor responses, so a new study hopes to address these concerns.
The German Aerospace Center (DLR) in collaboration with NASA is looking for 12 candidates to spend 60 days in bed.
Candidates who complete the two-month program will be paid a salary of 18,000 euros.
This study is scheduled to start in the fall of 2024, and participants will have to participate in it for a total of 88 days, which includes preparation and observation at a medical research center in Cologne.
The aim of the study is to reproduce the conditions under which astronauts are in space to avoid “dizziness, stumbling and other coordination problems”.
“It’s not that easy to lie in bed for 60 days because the bed is tilted six degrees with the head down. This means the head is lower than the feet,” explains Edwin Mulder, head of research at DLR’s Institute of Aerospace Medicine.
The space agency notes that long periods in space can impair sensory perception, such as hearing, and motor responses, such as walking.
DLR invites applications from persons aged 24 to 55, with a height of 1.53 to 1.90 m and a BMI of 18 to 30. Applicants must be in good health, non-smokers and “with good knowledge of the German language”.
The selection process begins with an online application and takes place in several stages, including “an information session, psychological assessments, telephone interviews, preliminary medical assessments in Cologne, an assessment day and finally enrollment in the study”.
The participants will be divided into four groups to assess the effects of different treatments, such as strength and endurance training, on them.
One group will have their legs strapped to an incline board to give the impression of standing, while another group will simply lie on “gravity beds” designed to give the impression of floating and will have no “countermeasures”.
Participants will be required to perform daily activities including personal hygiene, toileting and eating while lying down.
Although these “earth astronauts”, as DLR calls them, will be housed in single rooms, they can also be placed in a common room to enjoy “shared activities such as board games or watching television”.
“DLR has been conducting bedside research since the 1980s. We know that taking part is not just a feat, but a real challenge indeed,” said the study’s organizers.
