The Mission

Neurolab, one of a series of missions which NASA has dedicated to the study of life sciences, will focus on the neurological system. Twenty-six Principal Investigators (PIs) and their more than eighty Co-Investigators, representing seven different countries, will focus their Neurolab experiments on neurobiology topics. The objective of this research is to examine the effects of microgravity on the normal central nervous system.

During the 16-day mission aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia, a seven-member crew will carry out a unique series of neurological studies in Spacelab, NASA's laboratory on the Space Shuttle. Like the Space Shuttle, the Spacelab module provides an environment similar to living conditions on Earth except in microgravity.

While the foremost goal of Neurolab is to expand our understanding of neurological functions in space, the research will serve as an educational tool that benefits Earth-based life science research as well. On the flight, the Neurolab crew will serve as both subjects and operators in carrying out a diverse complement of 26 investigations divided into studies by 8 scientific discipine teams:

Four teams with a combined total of 11 experiments will use human subjects:

Autonomic Nervous System Team will examine the effects of microgravity on the regulatory systems in humans and the consequences of autonomic system adaptation following return from space flight.
Sensory Motor and Performance Team will investigate the effects of adaptation to the microgravity environment on human perception and motor functions.
Sleep Team will evaluate the normal sleep patterns of crewmembers before, during, and after space flight to identify the factors which contribute to sleep disturbances which may be associated space flight.
Vestibular Team will investigate the fundamental question of how spatial orientation of the vestibulo-ocular reflex and the optokinetic response are altered in microgravity.

Four teams with a combined total of 15 experiments will use nonhuman subjects:

Neurobiology Team will study the effects of microgravity on development of gravity receptors in an invertebrate, the cricket.
Aquatic Team will carry out two experiments investigating the effects of microgravity on the development and activation of vestibular gravity-sensing organs in fresh and salt water animals.
Mammalian Development Team will study the effects of space flight on the normal development of the nervous system.
Adult Neuronal Plasticity Team will study the neural and physiological changes during space flight to ascertain the response of the adult rodent's central nervous system to microgravity.