Stasis

Deep space travel could take a number of years to reach a far off destination, and humans simply are not made for that type of travel.

One possible solution is to put the crew of spaceships into a state of hibernation.

“Scientists want to know if astronauts can hibernate during long spaceflights. First, they need to understand what hibernation is.”

If astronauts are asleep, fewer resources need to be invested in living quarters, accommodations, food, etc., and more can be spent on finding technologies to speed up the trip and protect the crew, such as thicker radiation shielding.

NASA’s Cryosleep Chamber

One of the most exciting space sleep projects is currently being developed at a company called SpaceWorks Enterprises. They’ve been working with NASA to develop a stasis chamber they say could keep astronauts asleep for 2 weeks at a time, and possibly longer.

Aside from greatly reducing the necessary food and water for the mission, these stasis chambers could also have some other major benefits, like requiring a smaller area to be thoroughly protected from radiation.

The researchers also want to equip the chambers with artificial gravity, which could prevent a lot of the negative health effects associated with long term space travel.

SpaceWorks would lower a person's core temperature to 32 degrees Celsius, then sedate them to stop the body's natural defense against the cold—shivering. Hospitals use this practice, called "therapeutic hypothermia" or "targeted temperature management," when a patient with a traumatic injury, such as cardiac arrest, needs extra time to heal due to lack of blood flow. The lowered temperature sets the patient into an unconscious-like state and acts as a neuroprotectant, slowing down his metabolic rate and lowering his risk of ischemic injury (tissue damage from lack of oxygen and other nutrients due to low blood flow). Once he's recovered, doctors can warm him back up and address other injuries.

NASA’s Cryosleep Chamber Could Help You Snooze Your Way to Mars