DLR - Institute of Aerospace Medicine

Projects in Departments

Aviator 2030

The aviation industry is envisioning a tremendous growth of air traffic within the next two decades. New technologies and operational concepts will be the key enablers to accommodate the increasing amount of movements in a safe, efficient and environment friendly manner. Current working concepts reach from improved interoperability of national ATM systems, via satellite based navigation, collaborative decision making, and self separation of aircraft up to fully automated air-ground-space systems. It can be expected that the introduction of such concepts will have a significant impact on the working conditions and job requirements of future air traffic controllers and pilots, who were selected on traditional job profiles reflecting the current and past operational settings.

MATROSHKA : Depths dose measurements in a human phantom

MATROSHKA is an ESA project that is realized under the direction of the DLR in collaboration with industrial partners DTM technologies (Modena) and Kayser-Italia (Livorno). MATROSHKA is a facility that simulates as exact as possible an astronaut while he leaves the 'protective' area of the spaceship in order to carry out work in free space. The task is to measure particle fluence and energy spectra, dose and dose rates outside and inside a human phantom over the period of a year. The data are needed to improve the determination of radiation exposure of an astronaut performing a space walk.

Life under extreme environmental conditions

The working team 'Photo- and Exobiology' develops biodiagnostic systems, in order to grasp and evaluate environmental strain caused by irradiation. The crucial point of our work is seated in the UV dosimetry and UV effect research on biomolecules as well as prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. In the field of Exobiology procedures are developed and used for studies on the viability under extreme environments on one hand, and used to evaluate the search for extraterrestrial life forms.

Effects of Aircraft Noise

Within the HGF/DLR project „Quiet Air Traffic“specific effects of nocturnal air traffic noise on humans are investigated. Purpose of this research, largest of its kind worldwide, is to achieve hard facts and exact predictions about effects of nocturnal air traffic noise on sleep, performance, and mental condition. This requires an enormous set of different methods with a large sample survey on many healthy males and females of various ages.

Strain in Flight Crew

Within the environment of aviation personnel certain factors occur that may lead to higher workloads and demands resulting in effects on performance and, finally, aviation safety. Studies carried out on subjects and aviation staff, investigate these factors and their effects on human performance, and results are used for improvements.

Fatigue and Transportation Safety

According to conservative estimates, about 20% of all fatal accidents were mainly caused by driver fatigue in Germany. The main causes of driver fatigue are insufficient and unrestful sleep, too many hours of work, too short rest periods and shift-work. In this project we develop new methods to encounter the problem fatigue in transportation. These methods are e.g. a computer program for the analysis of shift plans and prediction of fatigue, a training program for professional vehicle drivers and sleep disorder (apnoea) screenings in professional vehicle drivers. We summarize these activities under the term “Alertness Management”.

Cellular biodiagnostic for space research

The Cellular Biodiagnostic group develops cellular test systems capable of examining the impact of space conditions on humans already on cellular and molecular level. Bioassays to be developed relay on the receptor-reporter principle well known for many bacterial assays. The sensing systems consist of specially designed plasmids or vectors, where promoters, which is dependent on certain environmental conditions, act as a sensing receptor. Fluorescent proteins are valuable tools for reporter components. Receptor-reporter assays allow the detection of cellular signal transduction events dependent on special environmental parameters.

Influence of gravity (hypergravity/microgravity) on the function of normal and transformed epidermal melanocytes; role of cyclic GMP (guanosine 3',5' –cyclic monophosphate)

Human cell cultures (melanocytes) are investigated under altered gravity conditions. The study of melanoma cells in hypergravity (5 g) revealed significant differences between normal and transformed cell lines with regard to the concentrations of basic cellular messenger molecules (cGMP). The results may give new insights into the mechanisms of cancer formation and may also clarify, whether microgravity elevates an astronaut’s chance of evolving cancer in the course of his lifetime (Cell and Molekularbiology).

Effects of Vibration Training on Muscle, Bone, and Circulation; Application and Physiological Mechanisms

In the scope of this study the training effects of two differently constructed vibration platforms are tested in terms of muscle growth, muscle force and contraction velocity (Integrative Muscle Physiology), bone strength (Nutrition and Bone Physiology), and the cardio-vascular system (Cardiovascular- and Volume Regulation). Subjects are trained with weakened muscles due to long term immobilization or high age. Furthermore, vibration training is tested as a potential therapy for patients with hereditary muscle diseases.