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Science Forum Index » Space - Shuttle Forum » Fat Astronauts - why not?
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| John Doe |
 Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 5:16 pm |
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nmp wrote:
Quote: Is it? Seriously overweight people are of course at higher risk for
cardiovascular problems, diabetes and such. But such conditions do not
develop in just a few days. If someone is healthy at the moment of
launch, I think it is as likely they will be healthy during the mission
as it is for other "passengers".
If it takes 7 to 10 years between the time an astronaut is hired and the
time he/she is scheduled for a flight, during this time, NASA will have
invested a LOT of money into that astronaut for training (not just
his/her salary, but also use of all the facilities, and the people who
train them). If during this time, the astronaut's health degrades to a
point where he/she is no longer flight worthy, that investment becomes
wasted to a large extent. (that person might still be of use on the ground). |
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| Brian Thorn |
| Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 12:31 pm |
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On 22 Mar 2008 20:20:04 GMT, nmp <address@is.invalid> wrote:
Quote: An overweight person is more likely to become ill with one malady or
another than a average-weight-for-height person. The medical community
is nearly unanimous on this point.
Is it? Seriously overweight people are of course at higher risk for
cardiovascular problems, diabetes and such. But such conditions do not
develop in just a few days. If someone is healthy at the moment of
launch, I think it is as likely they will be healthy during the mission
as it is for other "passengers".
You misunderstand me. Let me try again...
NASA does not see the astronaut corps as a "one mission" group. They
see them as career astronauts. Consider it like West Point or
Annapolis. They only want the best, and they want them to go on to be
Generals and Admirals. Sure, a lot won't get that far, some will even
come down with a fatal disease, but West Point and Annapolis set out
to make Generals and Admirals, not just a soldier or sailor for the
next mission.
NASA wants as much productivity out of their astronauts as they can
get, both in space and on Earth. Their big investment in "making an
astronaut" is not for a single flight. They want someone who will
still be productive 10 or 20 years from now. An overweight astronaut
today is much less likely to be as productive 20 years from now as a
normal weight astronaut. There are always exceptions, but NASA looks
at the statistics. The statistics are clear on the future health of
currently overweight people.
Brian |
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| Jeff Findley |
| Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 4:24 pm |
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"nmp" <address@is.invalid> wrote in message
news:47e445e2$0$14355$e4fe514c@news.xs4all.nl...
Quote: Brian Thorn wrote:
On 21 Mar 2008 20:04:36 GMT, nmp <address@is.invalid> wrote:
2. there is no centrifuge training anymore and anyways, "training"
wouldn't reduce the risks associated with the extra weight
What, exactly, are these risks you speak of, if the "fatty" in question
is otherwise healthy?
There's no such thing. Those who claim otherwise are deluding
themselves.
That has become the prevalent belief, yes. But it is mistaken.
Truth is, a man of average height can be about 20 to 30 kg above "ideal"
weight and still be very healthy. He won't probably be running marathons
with that weight, or climb mountains. But not everyone is interested in
activities like that.
They won't become NASA astronauts either. A lot of activities astronauts
engage in are very physical in nature. For starters, launch loads of 3 G's
aren't trivial. EVA's are very strenuous. Even physically fit astronauts
have to exercise their hands a lot in order to be fit enough to perform
EVA's. And then there is the training. One could argue that NASA goes a
bit "overboard" with training, but it is what it is.
The bottom line is that this is a highly sought after job, so if you want to
land a job as a career NASA astronaut, you've got to be physically fit to
beat out the competition during the selection process.
Quote: We are not talking about the "morbidly obese" here (the 400 lbs cases).
I'm a bit of a bicyclist, so that shapes my perspective. I honestly
believe that as long as a person is able to ride a bicycle for at least a
couple of hours, without getting tired, they are probably physically fit
enough to sit in a chair while being rocketed into orbit. It's not like
they have to do a lot of things during the ride, and up there, of course,
zero-g will be the great equaliser.
We had a few astronauts fly who might fit that description. But they
generally weren't career NASA astronauts either. They were people flown as
passengers sometimes only for political and/or foreign policy reasons. One
of the Russians we flew on a shuttle/Mir flight definitely fit the
description of being quite a bit above his ideal weight. At the time there
was a lot of discussion in these groups whether or not he was a career
cosmonaut or more of a manager type person who just wanted to fly.
Jeff
--
A clever person solves a problem.
A wise person avoids it. -- Einstein |
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| Jeff Findley |
| Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 4:27 pm |
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"Brian Thorn" <bthorn64@suddenlink.net> wrote in message
news:cb4du3t9msocmhegtsqs3a58kp6pp6h2jl@4ax.com...
Quote: You misunderstand me. Let me try again...
NASA does not see the astronaut corps as a "one mission" group. They
see them as career astronauts. Consider it like West Point or
Annapolis. They only want the best, and they want them to go on to be
Generals and Admirals. Sure, a lot won't get that far, some will even
come down with a fatal disease, but West Point and Annapolis set out
to make Generals and Admirals, not just a soldier or sailor for the
next mission.
NASA wants as much productivity out of their astronauts as they can
get, both in space and on Earth. Their big investment in "making an
astronaut" is not for a single flight. They want someone who will
still be productive 10 or 20 years from now. An overweight astronaut
today is much less likely to be as productive 20 years from now as a
normal weight astronaut. There are always exceptions, but NASA looks
at the statistics. The statistics are clear on the future health of
currently overweight people.
It goes beyond what NASA wants. It's how many people they have applying for
such a limited number of jobs. They can *afford* to pick the best of the
best because for every one astronaut training position that opens up, there
are literally thousands of applicants. They pick the best of the best
because they *can*.
Similarly, West Point and Annapolis are in the same boat. People want to go
there because they *know* that only the best get to go there. So, you get a
lot of applicants to choose from and you only pick the best of the best to
attend.
Jeff
--
A clever person solves a problem.
A wise person avoids it. -- Einstein |
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| Jeff Findley |
| Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 4:33 pm |
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<charliexmurphy@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:d52c50b0-65cd-42b3-a63a-071c7559872c@k13g2000hse.googlegroups.com...
If my math is right, that's 264 lbs. At my (a bit less than average) height
that's 100 pounds over the lower limit of "overweight" according to my
doctor's charts. I know because I'm about 170 lbs and he's told me that I'm
over the lower limit of "overweight" and wants me to modify my diet and
exercise more.
Jeff
--
A clever person solves a problem.
A wise person avoids it. -- Einstein |
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