A Simple Homemade Polarised Sunglasses Test Card

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bamdad, Farzad

2016-01-01

In this article construction of a simple and inexpensive test card which can be used to demonstrate the polarisation ability of sunglasses is described. The card was fabricated simply by using a piece of polariser sheet with one to three layers of cellophane tape fixed on it.

How Good Are Your Sunglasses?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Novak, Igor

1997-01-01

Provides a description of an experiment in which students use a standard ultraviolet and intense blue (UV/VIS) spectrophotometer to measure the amount and energy of light. Explains how a simple measurement of the transmission spectrum of sunglasses can reveal differences between brands and can illustrate the destruction of the earth's ozone layer.…

Current status of photoprotection by window glass, automobile glass, window films, and sunglasses.

PubMed

Almutawa, Fahad; Vandal, Robert; Wang, Steven Q; Lim, Henry W

2013-04-01

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) has known adverse effects on the skin and eyes. Practitioners are becoming more aware of the importance of outdoor photoprotection. However, little attention is directed to the exposure of the skin and eyes to UVR through the window glass or sunglasses. The amount of ultraviolet transmission through glass depends mainly on the type of the glass. All types of commercial and automobile glass block the majority of ultraviolet-B; however, the degree of ultraviolet-A transmission depends on the type of glass. Laminated glass offers better UVA protection than tempered glass; new safety regulations for automobiles may result in increased use of laminated glass for side windows. Window films can be applied to glass to increase UVR protection. Sunglasses need to be compliant with one of the national standards; a wraparound style or side shields offer the best protection. Increased understanding by practitioners on the transmission of UVR through glass, window films, and sunglasses would allow them to better educate the public and to better manage photosensitive patients. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

21 CFR 801.410 - Use of impact-resistant lenses in eyeglasses and sunglasses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... potential eye injury, eyeglasses and sunglasses must be fitted with impact-resistant lenses, except in those... shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. (3) Each... resistance and shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section...

21 CFR 801.410 - Use of impact-resistant lenses in eyeglasses and sunglasses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... potential eye injury, eyeglasses and sunglasses must be fitted with impact-resistant lenses, except in those... shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. (3) Each... resistance and shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section...

21 CFR 801.410 - Use of impact-resistant lenses in eyeglasses and sunglasses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... potential eye injury, eyeglasses and sunglasses must be fitted with impact-resistant lenses, except in those... shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. (3) Each... resistance and shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section...

21 CFR 801.410 - Use of impact-resistant lenses in eyeglasses and sunglasses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... potential eye injury, eyeglasses and sunglasses must be fitted with impact-resistant lenses, except in those... shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. (3) Each... resistance and shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section...

21 CFR 801.410 - Use of impact-resistant lenses in eyeglasses and sunglasses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... potential eye injury, eyeglasses and sunglasses must be fitted with impact-resistant lenses, except in those... shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. (3) Each... resistance and shall be capable of withstanding the impact test described in paragraph (d)(2) of this section...

Development of automated prototype for studying the effect of solar aging on sunglasses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomes, L. M.; Ventura, L.

2015-06-01

The first Brazilian standard for UV protection sunglasses, NBR15111, was drafted and published in 2003, hitherto a faithful copy (mirror) of European, BSEN1836 standard. From 2010 to 2013 the Laboratório de Instrumentação Oftálmica of the School of Engineering of São Carlos (USP) made contribution in the review and drafting of this standard and the main change so far is on the extension of the UV range analysis for protection of sunglasses, i.e. from 280 - 380nm to 280-400nm. In previous studies, there are indications that ultraviolet protection degrades with use and exposure of sunglasses to natural ultraviolet radiation. Thus, this project aims to build a prototype for irradiating sunglasses lenses, where one of the spectacles will be submitted to the solar simulator; and the other to the prototype. This prototype consists of a panel with cover, which houses 100 lenses arranged in the vertical (user's) position and which will be irradiated by the sun from sunrise until sunset. The lid opens automatically and should turn towards the sun, so that the lens will always be irradiated facing the sun. Sensors will be installed to close the cover and protect the lenses of undesirable weather conditions and to determine the ultraviolet index to which the lenses are being subjected to. The exposure time and UV index will be recorded and automatic opening or closing the lid may also be interfered by a PC by online software. Previously to irradiation, spectroscopy will be performed and then repeated after every 30 days of exposure.

Shades of Emotion: What the Addition of Sunglasses or Masks to Faces Reveals about the Development of Facial Expression Processing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberson, Debi; Kikutani, Mariko; Doge, Paula; Whitaker, Lydia; Majid, Asifa

2012-01-01

Three studies investigated developmental changes in facial expression processing, between 3 years-of-age and adulthood. For adults and older children, the addition of sunglasses to upright faces caused an equivalent decrement in performance to face inversion. However, younger children showed "better" classification of expressions of faces wearing…

Saving Your Students' Skin. Undergraduate Experiments that Probe UV Protection by Sunscreens and Sunglasses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abney, James R.; Scalettar, Bethe A.

1998-06-01

Recent scientific evidence suggests that chlorofluorocarbons have substantially depleted the ozone layer, the earth's primary filter for ultraviolet radiation. At the same time, medical evidence has accumulated which suggests that exposure to ultraviolet radiation is a major cause of prevalent human health disorders, including skin cancer and cataracts. For these reasons, consumer purchases of sunscreens and sunglasses, which provide protection from ultraviolet radiation, have soared, and manufacturer interest in improving these products has intensified. This article describes absorption spectroscopy experiments that illustrate the mechanism of action of sunscreens and sunglasses and that highlight the differences between different products. The experiments are well suited to incorporation into an undergraduate science laboratory and will expose students to absorption phenomena in a familiar context with substantial environmental and medical relevance.

Penumbral lunar eclipse of September 16, 2016: observing with sunglasses to make it popular

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sigismondi, Costantino

2016-08-01

The observation of a penumbral lunar eclipse is usually missed for a lack of interest. The real problem is the difficulty to observe it, because the strong luminosity of the full Moon and the eye response is easily saturated, being difficult the detection of the penumbral limit. The solution to use sunglasses, even two or three folded can make this observation very popular;

Stress-Detection Lenses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

An Ames Research Center scientist invented an infrared lens used in sunglasses to filter out ultraviolet rays. This product finds its origins in research for military enemy detection. Through a Space Act Agreement, Optical Sales Corporation introduced the Hawkeye Lenses not only as sunglasses but as plant stress detection lenses. The lenses enhance the stressed part of the leaf, which has less chlorophyll than healthy leaves, through dyes that filter out certain wavelengths of light. Plant stress is visible earlier, at a stage when something can be done to save the plants.

Intraocular and crystalline lens protection from ultraviolet damage.

PubMed

Sliney, David H

2011-07-01

Although the risks of excess solar ultraviolet (UV) exposure of the skin are well recognized, the need for eye protection is frequently overlooked, or when sunglasses are also recommended, specific guidance is wrong or is not explained. Guidance from the World Health Organization at its InterSun webpage advises people to wear "wrap-around" sunglasses under many conditions. The objective of this study was to examine the need for UV filtration in prescription lenses, contact lenses, and sunglasses. The geometry of UV exposure of both eyes, solar position, ground reflection, pupil size, and lid opening were studied. Because an accurate determination of cumulative ocular exposure is difficult, the cornea itself can serve as a biologic dosimeter, because photokeratitis is not experienced on a daily basis but does under certain ground-surface and sunlight conditions. From a knowledge of the UV-threshold dose required to produce photokeratitis, we have an upper level of routine ocular exposure to ambient UV. From ambient UV measurements and observed photokeratitis, the upper limits of UV exposure of the crystalline lens or an intraocular lens implant are estimated. The risk of excess UV exposure of the germinative cells of the lens is greatest from the side. Sunglasses can actually increase UV exposure of the germinative region of the crystalline lens and the corneal limbus by disabling the eyes' natural protective mechanisms of lid closure and pupil constriction! The level of UV-A risk is difficult to define. Proper UV-absorbing contact lenses offer the best mode for filtering needless exposure of UV radiation of the lens and limbus.

Method for transmittance measurements in sunglasses for a kiosk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mello, Marcio M.; Figueiredo, M.; Konda, R. A.; Ventura, Liliane

2013-03-01

Light transmittance measurements through sunglasses lenses is one of the required tests of the Brazilian Standard NBR15111(2004). Its measurement establishes the category of the sample and determines the required ultraviolet, visible and infrared protection, as well as the attenuation coefficient for signal light recognition. However, these measurements are usually performed by spectrophotometers and educated users, who are acknowledged to manage the equipment, use the weighting functions (WF) and interpret the data. We propose an alternative method, which consists in having matching optics and electronics to obtain a close WF to be used in transmittance measurements, and create an accessible device, for public self-use, providing a simple way for measuring and educating the public about sunglasses protection. Measurements were made in 30 samples for UV test, performed for the 280 - 400nm range, where UVA and UVB light sources and two photodiode sensors with Erythema action response are assembled, and for traffic signal a visible light sensor was used with spectral human eye response and different LEDs. As for the visible test, the visible light sensor was used for different light sources: incandescent, fluorescent, and a set of LEDs, while the infrared test is performed by several LEDs that provide the 780 - 2000nm range, and an infrared sensor. For these tests, only the samples spectrum were used. The transmittances were within the deviation limit required by NBR15111. The results have led us to build a self service kiosk for public use providing the category, UV protection and IR protection of the sunglasses as well as the information regarding its use for driving.

Scratch-Resistant Lenses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Lewis Research Center developed a process for achieving diamond- hard coatings for aerospace systems. The technique involves coating the material with a film of diamond-like carbon (DLC) using direct ion deposition. An ion generator creates a stream of ions from a hydrocarbon gas source; the carbon ions impinge directly on the target substrate and 'grow' into a thin DLC film. In 1988, Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. received a license to the NASA patent. Diamonex, an Air Products spinoff company, further developed the NASA process to create the DiamondHard technology used on the Bausch & Lomb Ray- Ban Survivors sunglasses. The sunglasses are scratch-resistant and shed water more easily, thus reducing spotting.

Solar exposure of sunglasses: aging test display

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomes, L. M.; Masili, M.; Momesso, G. A.; Silva, F. M.; Ventura, L.

2018-02-01

In previous studies conducted in our lab, we have been investigating the aging effects on sunglasses. Some preliminary results have been indicating changes on the UV protection on the lenses. Therefore, besides irradiating the samples with a proper sun simulator, we have also been concerned on exposing the sunglasses to natural sun for further investigation and comparisons. Thus, this project aims expose the lenses for 24 months using an automatic solar exposition station, which consists of a series of 5 panels, housing 60 lenses arranged in the vertical position to the ground, which will be irradiated by the sun from sunrise until sunset. A box structure moves along a rail, driven by a motor and then the lenses are exposed. Humidity, rain, temperature, dust and UV index sensors, as well as a video camera are part of the system. The exposure time and UV index will be recorded and automatic opening or closing the box system may also be controlled by a PC using a webserver. The system was tested in working conditions, i.e. exposed to the weather and being automatically controlled, for five months to certifying that the samples could be exposed without being damaged. The next step of the research is to start the exposition cycles and to measure the expected transmittance variations after each cycle.

Sun-protection practices among undergraduates at an Australian University.

PubMed

Shahnam, Adel; Samarawickrema, Indira; Ali, Sayed

2017-05-01

To assess the sun-protection practices of undergraduates at the Australian National University. We sent emails with links to the questionnaire on the use of five sun-protection practices in the last fortnight of the summer to 3341 randomly selected students aged 18-24 years in this cross-sectional study. The response rate was 19% and 507 students met the inclusion criteria. The sample consisted of 338 female and 169 male students with a mean age of 20.5 years (SD ± 1.9). Any method of sun protection was used always or often by 32% of respondents. The commonest method used was shade (58%) while the least common was wearing a hat (8%). Domestic students (44%) used sunglasses more than the international students (23%, P < 0.05) and female students used sunscreen (48%) and sunglasses (37%) more than male students (33% and 23% respectively) (P < 0.05). In the 22-24-year-old age group non-medical students (54%) used sunglasses more than the medical students (36%, P < 0.05). Only a third of the sample practiced any method of sun protection and there were significant differences in the practices between subgroups, suggesting they were at an increased risk of sun damage. © 2015 The Australasian College of Dermatologists.

Anagrelide

MedlinePlus

... platelet-reducing agents. It works by slowing the production of platelets in the body. ... plan to avoid unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen. ...

STS-26 crewmembers in Hawaiian shirts and sunglasses pose for group portrait

NASA Image and Video Library

1988-10-02

STS026-09-008 (3 Oct 1988) --- STS-26 crewmembers wear Hawaiian attire (brightly colored shirts with bold prints) and sunglasses while giving the "thumbs up" signal as they pay tribute to the Hawaii tracking station during an unscheduled television (TV) downlink. On Discovery's, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103's, middeck are (left to right) Mission Specialist (MS) John M. Lounge, holding onto open airlock hatch, MS David C. Hilmers, wearing red shirt, Commander Frederick H. Hauck, wearing white shirt and positioned in center of crew, MS George D. Nelson, and Pilot Richard O. Covey (lower right corner of the frame). The shirts were given to the crewmembers by the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Loud and Proud Team.

Eye Wear

MedlinePlus

... are Sunglasses Safety goggles Glasses (also called eyeglasses) Contact lenses If you need corrective lenses, you may be able to choose between contacts or glasses. Either usually requires a prescription. Almost ...

Pinguecula

MedlinePlus

... exposure and eye irritation may be factors. Arc-welding is a major job-related risk. Symptoms A ... include: Keeping the eye well lubricated Wearing good quality sunglasses Avoiding eye irritants Images Eye anatomy References ...

Fluticasone Topical

MedlinePlus

... should; do not use tight-fitting diapers or plastic pants. Such use may increase side effects. ... prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen if you are using fluticasone ...

Nabumetone

MedlinePlus

... called NSAIDs. It works by stopping the body's production of a substance that causes pain, fever, and ... plan to avoid unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen. ...

Vemurafenib

MedlinePlus

... blocking the action of an abnormal protein that signals cancer cells to multiply. This helps slow or ... unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, lip balm and sunscreen (SPF ...

Cobimetinib

MedlinePlus

... blocking the action of an abnormal protein that signals cancer cells to multiply. This helps slow or ... unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, lip balm and sunscreen (SPF ...

Acalabrutinib

MedlinePlus

... blocking the action of the abnormal protein that signals cancer cells to multiply. This helps stop the ... unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen. Acalabrutinib may make ...

Alzheimer's Association

MedlinePlus

... Get involved Last Updated: Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's Formed in 1980, the Alzheimer's Association ... your eyes while supporting our vision of a world without Alzheimer’s. Sunglasses Wear purple on The Longest ...

Recreation and Quality of Life

MedlinePlus

... actually cover, so you should still wear sunglasses. Gray-colored lenses provide the most natural colors, while ... to distinguish traffic-light colors, which may make gray lenses a better choice for some people. Large ...

Recommended Types of Sunglasses

MedlinePlus

... Plastic Surgery Center Laser Surgery Education Center Redmond Ethics Center Global Ophthalmology Guide Academy Publications EyeNet Ophthalmology ... Plastic Surgery Center Laser Surgery Education Center Redmond Ethics Center Global Ophthalmology Guide Find an Ophthalmologist Advanced ...

Cyclopentolate Ophthalmic

MedlinePlus

... e.g., use sunglasses). Cyclopentolate may make your eyes sensitive to sunlight.you should know that ophthalmic cyclopentolate contains benzalkonium chloride, which can be absorbed by soft contact lenses. If you wear contact lenses, remove them before instilling ophthalmic cyclopentolate.

Prevent Eye Damage: Protect Yourself from UV Radiation

MedlinePlus

... vision. ® Snow Blindness (Photokeratitis): A temporary but painful burn to the cornea caused by a day at the beach without sunglasses; reflections off of snow, water, or concrete; or exposure to artificial light sources such as ...

Does the ANSI Z80.3 nonprescription sunglass and fashion eyewear standard go far enough?

PubMed

Barker, F M

1990-06-01

The recent public concern regarding sunglass protection from UV energy has sparked a significant debate among those in the research community and industry. This debate grows out of concern for the known effects of UV energy in producing or contributing to eye effects such as keratitis, cataract formation, and retinal damage. The ANSI Z80.3 Standard addresses itself to this issue by setting levels of UV energy that are permitted to be transmitted in various labeling categories for over-the-counter sunlenses. One important issue is that the ANSI Standard does not provide for an absolute block of UV energy in any category of these lenses. Because the technology to provide this sort of total UV block is currently available, it is argued that there should be at least one category of lens that is fully protective in the UV range.

UV protection for sunglasses: revisiting the standards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masili, Mauro; Schiabel, Homero; Ventura, Liliane

2014-02-01

In a continuing work of establishing safe limits for UV protection on sunglasses, we have estimated the incident UV radiation for the 280 nm - 400 nm range for 5500 locations in Brazil. Current literature establishes safe limits regarding ultraviolet radiation exposure in the spectral region 180nm-400nm for weighted and unweighted UV radiant exposure. British Standard BSEN1836(2005) and American Standard ANZI Z80.3(2009) require the UV protection in the spectral range 280nm-380nm, and The Brazilian Standard for sunglasses protection, NBR15111(20013), currently requires protection for the 280nm - 400nm range as established by literature. However, none of them take into account the total (unweighted) UVA radiant exposure.Calculations of these limits have been made for 5500 Brazilian locations which included the geographic position of the city; altitude, inclination angle of the Earth; typical atmospheric data (ozone column; water vapor and others) as well as scattering from concrete, grass, sand, water, etc.. Furthermore, regarding UV safety for the ocular media, the resistance to irradiance test required on this standard of irradiating the lenses for 25 continuous hours with a 450W sunlight simulator leads to a correspondence of 26 hours and 10 minutes of continuous exposure to the Sun. Moreover, since the sun irradiance in Brazil is quite large, integrations made for the 280-400 nm range shows an average of 45% of greater ultraviolet radiant exposure than for the 280-380 nm range. Suggestions on the parameters of these tests are made in order to establish safe limits according to the UV irradiance in Brazil.

Dapsone

MedlinePlus

... are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breast-feeding. If you become pregnant while taking dapsone, call your doctor.plan to avoid unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen. Dapsone may make your skin sensitive to sunlight.

Dehydration Comes on Fast and Can Be Fatal

MedlinePlus

... a hero. Learn CPR Use “ICE” in Your Cell Phone Prepare for Disasters Communication With Your Family And ... never leaveour homes and offices without our wallets, cell phones and sunglasses,” saidDr. Schneider. “Add bottled water to ...

FEASIBILITY STUDY AND DESIGN OF A SELF-ATTENUATING LIGHT VALVE

DTIC Science & Technology

The use of phototropic materials as self-attenuating light valves has been re-evaluated in the light of additional information. Sunglass...application still appears to be feasible. As eye-protective devices to prevent flashblindness and retinal burns from nuclear detonations, phototropic

Correlation between practice location as a surrogate for UV exposure and practice patterns to prevent corneal haze after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).

PubMed

Al-Sharif, Eman M; Stone, Donald U

2016-01-01

PRK is a refractive surgery that reshapes the corneal surface by excimer laser photoablation to correct refractive errors. The effect of increased ultraviolet (UV) exposure on promoting post-PRK corneal haze has been reported in the literature; however, information is lacking regarding the effect of ambient UV exposure on physician practice patterns. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of ophthalmologists' practice location on their reported practice patterns to prevent post-PRK corneal haze. A cross-sectional observational study was conducted through an online survey sent to ophthalmologists performing PRK. The survey recorded the primary city of practice from which the two independent variables, latitude and average annual sunshine days, were determined. It also measured the frequency of use of postoperative preventive interventions (dependent variables) which are as follows: intraoperative Mitomycin-C, oral vitamin C, sunglasses, topical corticosteroids, topical cyclosporine, oral tetracyclines and amniotic membrane graft. Fifty-one ophthalmologists completed the survey. Practice locations' mean latitude was 36.4 degrees north, and average sunshine days annually accounted for 60% of year days. There was no significant relation between latitude/average annual sunshine days and usual post-PRK prophylactic treatments ( P  > 0.05). The commonest protective maneuvers were sunglasses (78%), prolonged topical corticosteroids (57%), Mitomycin-C (39%) and oral vitamin C (37%). We found no significant difference in ophthalmologists' practice patterns to prevent post-PRK corneal haze in relation to practice location latitude and average sunshine days. Moreover, the results demonstrated that the most widely used postoperative measures to prevent post-PRK haze are sunglasses, Mitomycin-C, topical corticosteroids, and oral Vitamin C.

Photobiology eye safety for horticultural LED lighting: Transmittance performance of eyewear protection using high-irradiant monochromatic LEDs.

PubMed

Wu, Bo-Sen; Lefsrud, Mark G

2018-02-01

Light emitting diodes have slowly gained market share as horticultural lighting systems in greenhouses due to their rapid improvement in color performances and light outputs. These advancements have increased the availability of the full spectrum of visible wavelengths and the corresponding irradiance outputs available to plants. However, light emitting diodes owners have limited information on the proper options for personal eyewear protection as the irradiance levels have increased. The objective of this study was to measure the light transmittance performance of 12 eyewear protection including welding goggles, safety goggles, polarized glasses, and sunglasses across the human visible spectrum (380-740 nm) up to an irradiance level of 1500 W·m -2 from high-irradiant light emitting diodes assemblies. Based on the spectral measurements, certain transmitted spectra exhibited spectrum shifts or an alteration in the bimodal distribution which were different than the light emitting diodes spectra, due to the uneven transmittance efficiencies of the glasses. As for the measured transmittance percentages in two experiments, each type of eyewear protection showed distinct transmittance performances, and the performance of the tested eyewear protection was not impacted by irradiance but was dependent on the wavelength. The mean light transmittance was 1.77% for the welding glasses, 13.12% for the polarized glasses, 15.27% for the safety goggles, and 27.65% for the sunglasses. According to these measured results and the spectral weighting exposure limits from the International Electrotechnical Commission 62471 and EU directive 2006/25, consumers and workers using horticultural lighting can select welding goggles or polarized glasses, to limit the possible ocular impact of the high irradiance of monochromatic light in electrical lighting environment. Sunglasses and safety goggles would not be advised as protection, especially if infrared radiation was used.

STS-51F crew activities

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-06-25

51F-06-017 (29 July-6 Aug. 1985) --- Crew portrait with sunglasses. C. Gordon Fullerton's head is at center. Others (bottom, l.-r.) are Roy D. Bridges, F. Story Musgrave and John David Bartoe; and (top) Karl J. Henize, Loren W. Acton and Anthony W. England.

Chemical Principles Exemplified

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plumb, Robert C.

1970-01-01

This is the first of a new series of brief ancedotes about materials and phenomena which exemplify chemical principles. Examples include (1) the sea-lab experiment illustrating principles of the kinetic theory of gases, (2) snow-making machines illustrating principles of thermodynamics in gas expansions and phase changes, and (3) sunglasses that…

To Think Spatially and Environmentally, Put on Your Geography Sunglasses!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Mark C.

2016-01-01

Educators need to teach the geographic perspective because spatial and environmental thinking are central to understanding how the earth changes. In the more narrow interest of helping students to excel in school, it is impossible to teach students every possible example that they might encounter on an exam. How to teach perspectives and skills is…

Impact of disguise on identification decisions and confidence with simultaneous and sequential lineups.

PubMed

Mansour, Jamal K; Beaudry, Jennifer L; Bertrand, Michelle I; Kalmet, Natalie; Melsom, Elisabeth I; Lindsay, Roderick C L

2012-12-01

Prior research indicates that disguise negatively affects lineup identifications, but the mechanisms by which disguise works have not been explored, and different disguises have not been compared. In two experiments (Ns = 87 and 91) we manipulated degree of coverage by two different types of disguise: a stocking mask or sunglasses and toque (i.e., knitted hat). Participants viewed mock-crime videos followed by simultaneous or sequential lineups. Disguise and lineup type did not interact. In support of the view that disguise prevents encoding, identification accuracy generally decreased with degree of disguise. For the stocking disguise, however, full and 2/3 coverage led to approximately the same rate of correct identifications--which suggests that disrupting encoding of specific features may be as detrimental as disrupting a whole face. Accuracy was most affected by sunglasses and we discuss the role metacognitions may have played. Lineup selections decreased more slowly than accuracy as coverage by disguise increased, indicating witnesses are insensitive to the effect of encoding conditions on accuracy. We also explored the impact of disguise and lineup type on witnesses' confidence in their lineup decisions, though the results were not straightforward.

KSC-02pd0426

NASA Image and Video Library

2002-03-28

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Astronaut Frank Culbertson (with sunglasses) gets help moving a tree into its freshly dug hole near KSC Headquarters Building. The tree commemorates his stay on and safe return from the International Space Station as a member of the Expedition 3 crew. Culbertson served as commander for the four-month stay, August to December 2001. The tree planting is a tradition for the Expedition crews.

Prevention of the adverse photic effects of peripheral light-focusing using UV-blocking contact lenses.

PubMed

Kwok, L Stephen; Kuznetsov, Valerian A; Ho, Arthur; Coroneo, Minas T

2003-04-01

Peripheral light-focusing (PLF) is an occult form of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) hazardous to the human eye. In PLF, obliquely incident light is refracted from the peripheral cornea to concentrated sites inside the anterior segment. In the current study, the directionality of this phenomenon for UVR and whether PLF is established in outdoor settings exposed to sunlight were investigated. The protection provided by a UV-blocking contact lens was also evaluated. UVA and UVB sensors were placed on the nasal limbus of an anatomically based model eye. The temporal limbus was exposed to a UV light source placed at various angles behind the frontal plane. PLF was quantified with the sensor output. The ensemble was mounted in the orbit of a mannequin head and exposed to sunlight in three insolation environments within the region of Sydney, Australia. PLF for UVA and UVB was determined with no eyewear or with sunglasses and commercially available soft contact lenses, with and without UV-blocking capability. The intensity of UVA peaked at approximately 120 degrees incidence, the level at which the UVB response was also at its maximum. The intensification of UVA was up to x18.3. The intensity of PLF for UVA and UVB was reduced by an order of magnitude by a UV-blocking contact lens, whereas a clear contact lenses had a much lesser effect. Only the UV-blocking contact lens achieved a significant effect on UVA and UVB irradiance in the urban, beach, and mountain locales (P < 0.056). The results identify another type of sunlight hazard: the peripheral focusing of obliquely incident light. UVR from albedo (reflected ambient light) is capable of establishing PLF in the anterior segment, but this can be shielded by UV-blocking soft contact lenses. Sunglasses may be unable to shield oblique rays, unless side protection is incorporated. Contact lenses can offer UVR protection against all angles of incidence, including the peak-response angle. They can also protect the eye in settings in which the wearing of sunglasses is not feasible or convenient.

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-05-18

NASA Social participants are reflected in the sunglasses of former NASA astronaut Garrett Reisman, now a senior engineer working on astronaut safety and mission assurance for Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, as he speaks with them, Friday, May 18, 2012, at the launch complex where the company's Falcon 9 rocket is set to launch early Friday morning at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Photo Credit: (NASA/Paul E. Alers)

Army Logistician. Volume 39, Issue 4, July-August 2007

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-08-01

because they fit underneath by CaPtain joy a. sChMaLzLe Battlefield Vision: Eyeglasses for the Soldier ARMy LOGISTICIAN PROFESSIONAL BULLETIN...a lens to fit into the frame . To create sunglasses, lenses are placed into a tint bath until they reach the desired darkness. The OptiCast system...Staff Sergeant Michael P. Winkler, USAR 28 Battlefield Vision: Eyeglasses for the Soldier—Captain Joy A. Schmalzle 31 Tiedown for Safety and

The Evolving Requirements of the Canadian Special Operations Forces: A Future Concept Paper

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-09-01

possess an unflappable personality, a courage that Ernest Hemingway de- scribed as “grace under pressure.” 4 In addition, tact and persuasive skills...skill sets that could be easily placed under the capabilities umbrella of special op- erations. As an example, a former American SOF officer advised...operators, wearing trendy wraparound sunglasses and Nike baseball caps, resulted in media hype and, hence, political and public attention. Unfortunate

Audit unto others{hor_ellipsis}

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Maday, J.H. Jr.

1992-05-01

My first encounter with a quality assurance auditor is reminiscent of an old Dodge commercial. You remember? The old sheriff, masked in mirrored sunglasses, paunch hanging over his gun belt, prophesying, ``You`re in a heap o` trouble boy!`` Well, my auditor could have been kin to the sheriff; they had the same posture, attitude, and mirrored sunglasses. Plus, my auditor wore a black leather vest and sported a ``Buffalo Bill`` goatee. While certainly memorable, both gentlemen were far from pleasant. I`m fairly certain that the compliance auditor of old deserved this perceived association with his law enforcement counterpart. Both believedmore » in enforcing the letter of the law, or their interpretations of it. Neither seemed capable of exercising interpretive powers, but instead relied on winning through intimidation, possibly with an eye toward claiming some version of a monthly Quota Award. Is the auditor of today any better perceived? Because this ``first encounter of the worst kind`` made a lasting impression on me, I have dedicated considerable time and effort trying to avoid being perceived as another sheriff when I conduct audits. In my auditing career, I am determined to capitalize on each opportunity to turn negative situations, as experienced by the auditee, into meaningful opportunities for improved performance. I want to treat the auditee the way I want to be treated when I am being audited. (author)« less

Audit unto others hor ellipsis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Maday, J.H. Jr.

1992-05-01

My first encounter with a quality assurance auditor is reminiscent of an old Dodge commercial. You remember The old sheriff, masked in mirrored sunglasses, paunch hanging over his gun belt, prophesying, You're in a heap o' trouble boy '' Well, my auditor could have been kin to the sheriff; they had the same posture, attitude, and mirrored sunglasses. Plus, my auditor wore a black leather vest and sported a Buffalo Bill'' goatee. While certainly memorable, both gentlemen were far from pleasant. I'm fairly certain that the compliance auditor of old deserved this perceived association with his law enforcement counterpart. Bothmore » believed in enforcing the letter of the law, or their interpretations of it. Neither seemed capable of exercising interpretive powers, but instead relied on winning through intimidation, possibly with an eye toward claiming some version of a monthly Quota Award. Is the auditor of today any better perceived Because this first encounter of the worst kind'' made a lasting impression on me, I have dedicated considerable time and effort trying to avoid being perceived as another sheriff when I conduct audits. In my auditing career, I am determined to capitalize on each opportunity to turn negative situations, as experienced by the auditee, into meaningful opportunities for improved performance. I want to treat the auditee the way I want to be treated when I am being audited. (author)« less

Trends in sun-protection behaviour in Australian adults 2007-2012.

PubMed

Koch, Severine; Pettigrew, Simone; Minto, Carolyn; Slevin, Terry; Strickland, Mark; Lin, Chad; Jalleh, Geoffrey

2017-05-01

Almost all skin cancers are the result of overexposure to UV radiation and could be prevented by adhering to a number of simple behavioural guidelines to minimise exposure to the sun. The present study examined trends in sun-protection behaviour among adults living in Western Australia, a region with high levels of UV radiation. During five summers from 2008 to 2012, 2076 Western Australian adults participated in annual, cross-sectional telephone surveys that assessed how often they engaged in a range of sun-protection behaviour (seeking shade, staying inside and wearing a hat, protective clothing, sunscreen or sunglasses). Apart from an increase in sunscreen use and a consistently high use of sunglasses, most sun-protection behaviour remained stable at moderate levels during the 5-year period. Seeking shade, staying inside and wearing a hat were all practised at levels ranging between 'sometimes' and 'usually' on sunny days in summer during peak UV hours, with little to no variability across the survey years. Wearing protective clothing was the least frequent behaviour across all survey years and was significantly lower in the most recent survey year relative to baseline. Further efforts are required to encourage greater enactment of sun-protection behaviour, especially on the use of protective clothing and seeking shade during periods of high UV radiation. © 2016 The Australasian College of Dermatologists.

Proceedings of the DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) Workshop on Diamond-Like Carbon Coatings, held at Albuquerque, New Mexico on April 19-20, 1982,

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-01-01

COATINGS 1 REQUIREMENTS AND POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS Possible Applications of Diamondlike Carbon Coatings for Missile Systems and Lasers - H. E. Bennett 15...34,’’- .- ’’,.’-""." .’ ’" " - - 1 .’ , -. - - . ’- ,-. reach (e.g., the sunglasses, or coatings for land vehicle optics) while others may require fairly long development...lenses and mirrors K. (e) Heat sinks for electronics f) Passivating coatings (in optical discs, solar cells , etc.) (g) Wear-reslstant/eroslon-resistant

Ultraviolet-Blocking Lenses Protect, Enhance Vision

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2010-01-01

To combat the harmful properties of light in space, as well as that of artificial radiation produced during laser and welding work, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) scientists developed a lens capable of absorbing, filtering, and scattering the dangerous light while not obstructing vision. SunTiger Inc. now Eagle Eyes Optics, of Calabasas, California was formed to market a full line of sunglasses based on the JPL discovery that promised 100-percent elimination of harmful wavelengths and enhanced visual clarity. The technology was recently inducted into the Space Technology Hall of Fame.

Eyes only? Perceiving eye contact is neither sufficient nor necessary for attentional capture by face direction.

PubMed

Böckler, Anne; van der Wel, Robrecht P R D; Welsh, Timothy N

2015-09-01

Direct eye contact and motion onset both constitute powerful cues that capture attention. Recent research suggests that (social) gaze and (non-social) motion onset influence information processing in parallel, even when combined as sudden onset direct gaze cues (i.e., faces suddenly establishing eye contact). The present study investigated the role of eye visibility for attention capture by these sudden onset face cues. To this end, face direction was manipulated (away or towards onlooker) while faces had closed eyes (eliminating visibility of eyes, Experiment 1), wore sunglasses (eliminating visible eyes, but allowing for the expectation of eyes to be open, Experiment 2), and were inverted with visible eyes (disrupting the integration of eyes and faces, Experiment 3). Participants classified targets appearing on one of four faces. Initially, two faces were oriented towards participants and two faces were oriented away from participants. Simultaneous to target presentation, one averted face became directed and one directed face became averted. Attention capture by face direction (i.e., facilitation for faces directed towards participants) was absent when eyes were closed, but present when faces wore sunglasses. Sudden onset direct faces can, hence, induce attentional capture, even when lacking eye cues. Inverted faces, by contrast, did not elicit attentional capture. Thus, when eyes cannot be integrated into a holistic face representation they are not sufficient to capture attention. Overall, the results suggest that visibility of eyes is neither necessary nor sufficient for the sudden direct face effect. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Scientific American Inventions From Outer Space: Everyday Uses For NASA Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baker, David

2000-01-01

The purpose of this book is to present some of the inventions highlighted in the yearly publication of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Spinoff. These inventions cover a wide range, some of which include improvements in health, medicine, public safety, energy, environment, resource management, computer technology, automation, construction, transportation, and manufacturing technology. NASA technology has brought forth thousands of commercial products which include athletic shoes, portable x-ray machines, and scratch-resistant sunglasses, guidance systems, lasers, solar power, robotics and prosthetic devices. These products are examples of NASA research innovations which have positively impacted the community.

STS-32 Columbia, OV-102, crew eats preflight breakfast at KSC O and C Bldg

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1990-01-01

STS-32 crewmembers eat preflight breakfast at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Operations and Checkout (O and C) Building before boarding Columbia, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102. Sitting around table (left to right) are Mission Specialist (MS) Marsha S. Ivins, MS Bonnie J. Dunbar, Commander Daniel C. Brandenstein, Pilot James D. Wetherbee, and MS G. David Low. A cake decorated with the STS-32 mission insignia is in the center of the table. Crewmembers are wearing red, white, and blue mission polo shirts and have displayed their sunglasses with neckbands on the table in front of them.

Assessment of the performance of automated focimeters in the measurement of single vision spectacle lenses.

PubMed

Chu, Byoung-Sun; Ngo, Thao P T; Cheng, Brian B; Dain, Stephen J

2014-07-01

The accuracy and precision of any instrument should not be taken for granted. While there is an international standard for checking focimeters, there is no report of any study on their performance. A sample set of 51 focimeters (11 brands), were used to measure the spherical power of a set of lenses and the prismatic power of two lenses complying with ISO 9342-1:2005 and other calibrated prismatic lenses and the spherical power of some grey filters. The mean measured spherical power corresponded very closely with the calibrated values; however, the spread of results was substantial and 10 focimeters did not comply with ISO 8598:1996. The measurement of prism was much more accurate and precise and all the focimeters complied easily. With the grey filters, about one-third of the focimeters either showed erratic reading or an error with the equivalent of category 4 sunglasses. On the other hand, nine focimeters had stable and accurate reading on a filter with a luminous transmittance of 0.5 per cent. These results confirm that, in common with all other measurement instruments, there is a need to ensure that a focimeter is reading accurately and precisely over the range of refractive powers and luminous transmittances. The accurate and precise performance of an automated focimeter over its working life cannot be assumed. Checking before purchase with a set of calibrated lenses and some dark sunglass tints will indicate the suitability of a focimeter. Routine checking with the calibrated lenses will inform the users if a focimeter continues to indicate accurately. © 2014 The Authors. Clinical and Experimental Optometry © 2014 Optometrists Association Australia.

These Boots are Made for Stalking: Characteristics of Female Stalkers

PubMed Central

West, Sara G.; Friedman, Susan Hatters

2008-01-01

When one is asked to picture a stalker, images of men with dark sunglasses, trench coats, and surreptitious behavior may come to mind. Contrary to popular belief, it is premature for mental health professionals to discount the actions of female stalkers. This article reviews how stalking is defined and classified in a broad sense and why it is important for mental health professionals to be aware of stalking behavior. The article narrows the focus to what the research has shown about women who stalk. Finally, there is a brief discussion of women who stalk celebrities and of Hollywood‘s portrayal of the female stalker. PMID:19727274

Spontaneous growth of polarizing refractory metal ‘nano-fins’

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tai, M. C.; Gentle, A. R.; Arnold, M. D.; Cortie, M. B.

2018-03-01

Traditional polymer polarizers degrade in harsh environments and at high temperatures, reducing the polarization effect. In contrast, polarizers produced with refractory metals have vastly improved thermal stability and resistance to harsh environments but are expensive to fabricate. Here we demonstrate prototype refractory metal wire grid polarizers produced by co-sputtering molybdenum and aluminum under specific conditions. Removal of the aluminum through selective dissolution enables the nanostructure array to transmit light. The polarization spans 500-1100 nm and the extinction ratio significantly increases to >100. Possessing broadband polarization and sufficient extinction ratios, the new polarizing film has potential applications in coatings for sunglasses, windows, pyrometers, scientific instruments, and LCD panels.

A tribute to Dr. Robert C. Allen, an inspirational teacher, humanitarian, and friend (Nov. 18, 1950-Mar. 24, 2005).

PubMed

Edlich, Richard F; Greene, Jill A; Long, William B

2006-01-01

Dr. Robert C. Allen was a gifted educator, as well as experienced ophthalmologist, who was a close personal friend of Dr. Edlich at the University of Virginia Health System. While serving on the faculty at the University of Virginia Health System, Dr. Allen proved to be a compassionate physician, who developed close personal relationships with the residents, faculty, and his patients. Dr. Allen was invited by Dr Edlich to be a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Long-Term Effects of Medical Implants. When Dr. Allen told Dr. Edlich that he had ocular melanoma in 2000, this news was a wake-up call to Dr. Edlich on the need to prevent skin cancer, as well as ocular melanoma. Empowered by this news, Dr. Edlich was honored to co-author four articles on skin cancer prevention, as well as the latest article focusing on prevention of ocular melanoma. The Ocular Melanoma Foundation (Richmond, VA (USA)) was founded in 2003 by Dr. Robert C. Allen to increase awareness, enhance education, and provide advocacy among both patients and health care professionals regarding this rare, but potentially lethal cancer. It has a website that provides patient information, up-to-date information and enables communication/ discourse between and among patients and practitioners (admin@ocularmelanoma.org). Dr. Allen died on March 24, 2005, at his home surrounded by family and loved ones. When surgeons are faced with challenging healthcare diseases, Dr. Edlich's mentor, Dr. Owen Wangensteen, advised Dr. Edlich that he should seek the advice and guidance of skilled basic scientists, who are familiar with the problem. Dr. Wangensteen is recognized as the greatest surgical teacher during the 20th century. Consequently, Dr. Edlich enlisted the advice and guidance from the two co-authors of the next article regarding the scientific basis for the selection of sunglasses to prevent the development of cataracts, pterygia, skin cancer, as well as ocular melanoma. Dr. Reichow is a Professor of Optometry at Pacific University College of Optometry (Forest Grove, OR (USA)). Dr. Citek is Associate Professor of Optometry at Pacific University College of Optometry (Forest Grove (USA)). In their comprehensive evaluation of sunglasses, they found some disturbing results. Despite being endorsed by The Skin Cancer Foundation, the Walgreens eyewear samples offer only partial protection to the potential hazards of sunlight exposure. Those individuals who spend considerable time outdoors should seek sun filter eyewear with impact resistant polycarbonate lenses that provide 100% ultraviolet filtration, high levels of blue light filtration, and full visual field lens/frame coverage as provided by high wrap eyewear. There are several brands that offer products with such protective characteristics. Performance sun eyewear by Nike Vision (Nike Inc., Portland OR [USA]), available in both corrective and plano (nonprescription) forms, is one such brand incorporating these protective features, as well as patented optical and tint designs. Numerous Nike styles offer interchangeable lens options to meet the changing environmental conditions encountered outdoors. These technologies are incorporated into performance-driven frame designs inspired by feedback from some of the world's best athletes. Nonprescription Nike eyewear are available on-line at http://www.nike.com/nikevision, as well as at various well-known retail outlets. Nonprescription and prescription Nike eyewear are also available at the offices of many eye care professionals. Even though our latest report did not include soft contact lens, it is important to emphasize that Dr. Reichow and Dr. Citek have played a leadership role in coordinating the development of the Nike MAXSIGHT, an innovative fully tinted soft contact lens. This contact lens provides distortion-free optics, whether or not you wear prescription contacts. They filter out more than 90% of harmful blue light and 95% of UVA and UVB. For the contact lens, you should go to the website for more information http://www.nike.com/nikevision/content.html. The website has a list of practitioners who can service the patients with the respective sunglasses. With their exciting technologic advances in sunglass products, as well as tinted soft contact lens, the authors would encourage Nike Vision to develop an expanded international marketing program that allows all individuals in the world to easily purchase its products.

Euro Banknote Recognition System for Blind People.

PubMed

Dunai Dunai, Larisa; Chillarón Pérez, Mónica; Peris-Fajarnés, Guillermo; Lengua Lengua, Ismael

2017-01-20

This paper presents the development of a portable system with the aim of allowing blind people to detect and recognize Euro banknotes. The developed device is based on a Raspberry Pi electronic instrument and a Raspberry Pi camera, Pi NoIR (No Infrared filter) dotted with additional infrared light, which is embedded into a pair of sunglasses that permit blind and visually impaired people to independently handle Euro banknotes, especially when receiving their cash back when shopping. The banknote detection is based on the modified Viola and Jones algorithms, while the banknote value recognition relies on the Speed Up Robust Features (SURF) technique. The accuracies of banknote detection and banknote value recognition are 84% and 97.5%, respectively.

Euro Banknote Recognition System for Blind People

PubMed Central

Dunai Dunai, Larisa; Chillarón Pérez, Mónica; Peris-Fajarnés, Guillermo; Lengua Lengua, Ismael

2017-01-01

This paper presents the development of a portable system with the aim of allowing blind people to detect and recognize Euro banknotes. The developed device is based on a Raspberry Pi electronic instrument and a Raspberry Pi camera, Pi NoIR (No Infrared filter) dotted with additional infrared light, which is embedded into a pair of sunglasses that permit blind and visually impaired people to independently handle Euro banknotes, especially when receiving their cash back when shopping. The banknote detection is based on the modified Viola and Jones algorithms, while the banknote value recognition relies on the Speed Up Robust Features (SURF) technique. The accuracies of banknote detection and banknote value recognition are 84% and 97.5%, respectively. PMID:28117703

Ultraviolet damage to the eye revisited: eye-sun protection factor (E-SPF®), a new ultraviolet protection label for eyewear.

PubMed

Behar-Cohen, Francine; Baillet, Gilles; de Ayguavives, Tito; Garcia, Paula Ortega; Krutmann, Jean; Peña-García, Pablo; Reme, Charlotte; Wolffsohn, James S

2014-01-01

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation potentially damages the skin, the immune system, and structures of the eye. A useful UV sun protection for the skin has been established. Since a remarkable body of evidence shows an association between UV radiation and damage to structures of the eye, eye protection is important, but a reliable and practical tool to assess and compare the UV-protective properties of lenses has been lacking. Among the general lay public, misconceptions on eye-sun protection have been identified. For example, sun protection is mainly ascribed to sunglasses, but less so to clear lenses. Skin malignancies in the periorbital region are frequent, but usual topical skin protection does not include the lids. Recent research utilized exact dosimetry and demonstrated relevant differences in UV burden to the eye and skin at a given ambient irradiation. Chronic UV effects on the cornea and lens are cumulative, so effective UV protection of the eyes is important for all age groups and should be used systematically. Protection of children's eyes is especially important, because UV transmittance is higher at a very young age, allowing higher levels of UV radiation to reach the crystalline lens and even the retina. Sunglasses as well as clear lenses (plano and prescription) effectively reduce transmittance of UV radiation. However, an important share of the UV burden to the eye is explained by back reflection of radiation from lenses to the eye. UV radiation incident from an angle of 135°-150° behind a lens wearer is reflected from the back side of lenses. The usual antireflective coatings considerably increase reflection of UV radiation. To provide reliable labeling of the protective potential of lenses, an eye-sun protection factor (E-SPF®) has been developed. It integrates UV transmission as well as UV reflectance of lenses. The E-SPF® compares well with established skin-sun protection factors and provides clear messages to eye health care providers and to lay consumers.

Space-Age Shades

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

Silhouette's Titan Minimal Art frames possess a super elasticity that ensures a slip-free fit for wearing comfort, without causing irritating pressure points. The titanium alloy used in the frames also prevents allergic reactions. This technology is available to both NASA astronauts and public consumers in either corrective eyewear or sunglass models. The only difference between the sunwear used by NASA astronauts and the commercial models is the lens. Silhouette and Dr. Keith Manuel, the "official" optometrist overseeing the NASA Space Shuttle, the International Space Station, and various other vision-related space projects, brought NASA a lens that is considerably darker (5.5 percent overall light transmittance), with a thin gold coating that offers total protection, not only against ultraviolet (UV) radiation, but also against the harmful infrared radiation in space.

Radiation Blocking Lenses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1993-01-01

The Biomedical Optical Company of America's Eagle 475 lens absorbs 100 percent of all photowavelengths considered hazardous to eye tissue, including ultraviolet and blue light, which are considered contributors to cataract and age-related macular degeneration. The lens absorbs hazardous wavelengths, but allows a higher percentage of visually useful areas of the spectrum to pass through. Polarization blocks out irritating glint and glare and heightens visual acuity. The Eagle 475 sunglasses are the latest in a series of spinoffs that originated at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory where two scientists developed a protective, welding curtain that filtered out harmful irradiance. The result was a commercial curtain that absorbs filters and scatters light, providing protection for personnel in welding areas. Further research focused on protective industrial glasses and later on consumer products.

Prevention of age-related macular degeneration.

PubMed

Wong, Ian Yat Hin; Koo, Simon Chi Yan; Chan, Clement Wai Nang

2011-02-01

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of blindness in the developed world. Although effective treatment modalities such as anti-VEGF treatment have been developed for neovascular AMD, there is still no effective treatment for geographical atrophy, and therefore the most cost-effective management of AMD is to start with prevention. This review looks at current evidence on preventive measures targeted at AMD. Modalities reviewed include (1) nutritional supplements such as the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) formula, lutein and zeaxanthin, omega-3 fatty acid, and berry extracts, (2) lifestyle modifications, including smoking and body-mass-index, and (3) filtering sunlight, i.e. sunglasses and blue-blocking intraocular lenses. In summary, the only proven effective preventive measures are stopping smoking and the AREDS formula.

Local ICA for the Most Wanted face recognition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guan, Xin; Szu, Harold H.; Markowitz, Zvi

2000-04-01

Facial disguises of FBI Most Wanted criminals are inevitable and anticipated in our design of automatic/aided target recognition (ATR) imaging systems. For example, man's facial hairs may hide his mouth and chin but not necessarily the nose and eyes. Sunglasses will cover the eyes but not the nose, mouth, and chins. This fact motivates us to build sets of the independent component analyses bases separately for each facial region of the entire alleged criminal group. Then, given an alleged criminal face, collective votes are obtained from all facial regions in terms of 'yes, no, abstain' and are tallied for a potential alarm. Moreover, and innocent outside shall fall below the alarm threshold and is allowed to pass the checkpoint. Such a PD versus FAR called ROC curve is obtained.

ColorChecker at the beach: dangers of sunburn and glare

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCann, John

2014-01-01

In High-Dynamic-Range (HDR) imaging, optical veiling glare sets the limits of accurate scene information recorded by a camera. But, what happens at the beach? Here we have a Low-Dynamic-Range (LDR) scene with maximal glare. Can we calibrate a camera at the beach and not be burnt? We know that we need sunscreen and sunglasses, but what about our cameras? The effect of veiling glare is scene-dependent. When we compare RAW camera digits with spotmeter measurements we find significant differences. As well, these differences vary, depending on where we aim the camera. When we calibrate our camera at the beach we get data that is valid for only that part of that scene. Camera veiling glare is an issue in LDR scenes in uniform illumination with a shaded lens.

ICPSU Install onto Mobile Launcher

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-16

The mobile launcher (ML) is reflected in the sunglasses of a construction worker with JP Donovan at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A crane is lifting the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage Umbilical (ICPSU) up for installation on the tower of the ML. The last of the large umbilicals to be installed, the ICPSU will provide super-cooled hydrogen and liquid oxygen to the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket's interim cryogenic propulsion stage, or upper stage, at T-0 for Exploration Mission-1. The umbilical is located at about the 240-foot-level of the mobile launcher and will supply fuel, oxidizer, gaseous helium, hazardous gas leak detection, electrical commodities and environment control systems to the upper stage of the SLS rocket during launch. Exploration Ground Systems is overseeing installation of the umbilicals on the ML.

Prevention of age-related macular degeneration

PubMed Central

Koo, Simon Chi Yan; Chan, Clement Wai Nang

2010-01-01

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of blindness in the developed world. Although effective treatment modalities such as anti-VEGF treatment have been developed for neovascular AMD, there is still no effective treatment for geographical atrophy, and therefore the most cost-effective management of AMD is to start with prevention. This review looks at current evidence on preventive measures targeted at AMD. Modalities reviewed include (1) nutritional supplements such as the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) formula, lutein and zeaxanthin, omega-3 fatty acid, and berry extracts, (2) lifestyle modifications, including smoking and body-mass-index, and (3) filtering sunlight, i.e. sunglasses and blue-blocking intraocular lenses. In summary, the only proven effective preventive measures are stopping smoking and the AREDS formula. PMID:20862519

Ultraviolet damage to the eye revisited: eye-sun protection factor (E-SPF®), a new ultraviolet protection label for eyewear

PubMed Central

Behar-Cohen, Francine; Baillet, Gilles; de Ayguavives, Tito; Garcia, Paula Ortega; Krutmann, Jean; Peña-García, Pablo; Reme, Charlotte; Wolffsohn, James S

2014-01-01

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation potentially damages the skin, the immune system, and structures of the eye. A useful UV sun protection for the skin has been established. Since a remarkable body of evidence shows an association between UV radiation and damage to structures of the eye, eye protection is important, but a reliable and practical tool to assess and compare the UV-protective properties of lenses has been lacking. Among the general lay public, misconceptions on eye-sun protection have been identified. For example, sun protection is mainly ascribed to sunglasses, but less so to clear lenses. Skin malignancies in the periorbital region are frequent, but usual topical skin protection does not include the lids. Recent research utilized exact dosimetry and demonstrated relevant differences in UV burden to the eye and skin at a given ambient irradiation. Chronic UV effects on the cornea and lens are cumulative, so effective UV protection of the eyes is important for all age groups and should be used systematically. Protection of children’s eyes is especially important, because UV transmittance is higher at a very young age, allowing higher levels of UV radiation to reach the crystalline lens and even the retina. Sunglasses as well as clear lenses (plano and prescription) effectively reduce transmittance of UV radiation. However, an important share of the UV burden to the eye is explained by back reflection of radiation from lenses to the eye. UV radiation incident from an angle of 135°–150° behind a lens wearer is reflected from the back side of lenses. The usual antireflective coatings considerably increase reflection of UV radiation. To provide reliable labeling of the protective potential of lenses, an eye-sun protection factor (E-SPF®) has been developed. It integrates UV transmission as well as UV reflectance of lenses. The E-SPF® compares well with established skin-sun protection factors and provides clear messages to eye health care providers and to lay consumers. PMID:24379652

Climate Prediction Sees Future Despite Chaos: Researchers Outside NASA use NCCS Resources for Studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

The air on this mostly sunny January day is crisp and the wind is blustery. The morning's National Weather Service 6-hour forecast had accurately predicted these conditions for the Baltimore-Washington area and the 2-3 day extended outlook was almost perfect. The previous week, the National Center for Environmental Prediction's (NCEP) 6-10 day temperature and precipitation outlook for the general trends for the' region was correct as well. However, no forecast could have predicted specific details about this day. It is 28.5 F in the sunshine bright enough for dark sunglasses, and windy enough to blow off a hat. Such details are impossible to foresee with any accuracy and are outside the scope of routine weather prediction. Equally difficult is accurately forecasting weather beyond about 2 weeks.

Sun protection behaviors among Latino migrant farmworkers in eastern North Carolina.

PubMed

Kearney, Gregory D; Phillips, Charles; Allen, Daniel Landon; Hurtado, Giovanny A; Hsia, Ling-Lun Bob

2014-12-01

Farmworkers are at an increased risk of skin cancer from exposure to excessive amounts of ultraviolet radiation from the sun. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate sun protection behaviors. A cross-sectional study of Latino farmworkers in eastern North Carolina was conducted using personal interviews followed by a full-body examination for skin cancers (N = 157). Participants were predominately, young, males from Mexico who spent 9 or more hours each work day in the sun. Most reported wearing long sleeved shirts (85.7%) and long pants (98.0%). Few workers rarely used sunscreen (90.8%) or wore sunglasses (87.4%). Skin cancers were not identified among workers. In general, farmworkers lack sufficient information and knowledge about the risks of skin cancer from the sun. Interventions for reducing excessive ultraviolet radiation exposures are warranted.

Good lamps are the best police: darkness increases dishonesty and self-interested behavior.

PubMed

Zhong, Chen-Bo; Bohns, Vanessa K; Gino, Francesca

2010-03-01

Darkness can conceal identity and encourage moral transgressions; it may also induce a psychological feeling of illusory anonymity that disinhibits dishonest and self-interested behavior regardless of actual anonymity. Three experiments provided empirical evidence supporting this prediction. In Experiment 1, participants in a room with slightly dimmed lighting cheated more and thus earned more undeserved money than those in a well-lit room. In Experiment 2, participants wearing sunglasses behaved more selfishly than those wearing clear glasses. Finally, in Experiment 3, an illusory sense of anonymity mediated the relationship between darkness and self-interested behaviors. Across all three experiments, darkness had no bearing on actual anonymity, yet it still increased morally questionable behaviors. We suggest that the experience of darkness, even when subtle, may induce a sense of anonymity that is not proportionate to actual anonymity in a given situation.

Adolescent sun protection at secondary school athletic sporting events - a misnomer.

PubMed

McNoe, Bronwen M; Reeder, Anthony I

2016-08-01

To observe the sun-protective practices of students and staff and related aspects of the physical environment at secondary school athletics days. This observational study of 1,225 students and 215 adult supervisors examined the use of sun-protective items (hats, clothing coverage, sunglasses), sunscreen provision and shade. Sun-protective behaviour was poor with only 3% of students and 25% of adult supervisors wearing a sun-protective hat. Shade was not available to most students, either as competitors or while waiting to compete. Sunscreen provision was 50%. Portable shade for students waiting to compete should be available at competitive events. Students should be encouraged to wear sun-protective hats and clothing while not competing and SPF30+ broad-spectrum sunscreen should always be provided. Guidelines for adult supervisors should be developed so they role model appropriate sun protection. © 2016 Public Health Association of Australia.

Evidence for top-down control of eye movements during visual decision making.

PubMed

Glaholt, Mackenzie G; Wu, Mei-Chun; Reingold, Eyal M

2010-05-01

Participants' eye movements were monitored while they viewed displays containing 6 exemplars from one of several categories of everyday items (belts, sunglasses, shirts, shoes), with a column of 3 items presented on the left and another column of 3 items presented on the right side of the display. Participants were either required to choose which of the two sets of 3 items was the most expensive (2-AFC) or which of the 6 items was the most expensive (6-AFC). Importantly, the stimulus display, and the relevant stimulus dimension, were held constant across conditions. Consistent with the hypothesis of top-down control of eye movements during visual decision making, we documented greater selectivity in the processing of stimulus information in the 6-AFC than the 2-AFC decision. In addition, strong spatial biases in looking behavior were demonstrated, but these biases were largely insensitive to the instructional manipulation, and did not substantially influence participants' choices.

Globe rupture with post cataract-surgery safety sunglasses.

PubMed

Brooks, Clifford W; Howard, Robert C; Lyons, Robert A; Reilly, Charles D

2010-07-01

We report a case of globe rupture associated with the use of post cataract-surgery protective eyewear. The patient had routine cataract surgery 3 months before presentation and had adapted his post cataract-surgery glasses to use on the tennis court. He experienced a large posterior globe rupture after falling directly onto his face during a match. Spectacle torsion is the suspected biomechanical process that led to the rupture. We conclude that although the glasses given to many patients after cataract surgery are protective for most low-impact injuries, patients should be aware they are not designed for activities with a risk for significant impact. Patients should also be counseled to use protective eyewear specifically designed and approved for the sport or activity in which they participate. No author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Visual Darkness Reduces Perceived Risk of Contagious-Disease Transmission From Interpersonal Interaction.

PubMed

Dong, Ping; Zhong, Chen-Bo

2018-05-01

We examined the psychological impact of visual darkness on people's perceived risk of contagious-disease transmission. We posited that darkness triggers an abstract construal level and increases perceived social distance from others, rendering threats from others to seem less relevant to the self. We found that participants staying in a dimly lit room (Studies 1 and 3-5) or wearing sunglasses (Study 2) tended to estimate a lower risk of catching contagious diseases from others than did those staying in a brightly lit room or wearing clear glasses. The effect persisted in both laboratory (Studies 1-4) and real-life settings (Study 5). The effect arises because visual darkness elevates perceived social distance from the contagion (Study 3) and is attenuated among abstract (vs. concrete) thinkers (Study 4). These findings delineate a systematic, unconscious influence of visual darkness-a subtle yet pervasive situational factor-on perceived risk of contagion. Theoretical contributions and policy implications are discussed.

Predictors of Sun-Protective Practices among Iranian Female College Students: Application of Protection Motivation Theory.

PubMed

Dehbari, Samaneh Rooshanpour; Dehdari, Tahereh; Dehdari, Laleh; Mahmoudi, Maryam

2015-01-01

Given the importance of sun protection in the prevention of skin cancer, this study was designed to determine predictors of sun-protective practices among a sample of Iranian female college students based on protection motivation theory (PMT) variables. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 201 female college students in Iran University of Medical Sciences were selected. Demographic and PMT variables were assessed with a 67-item questionnaire. Multiple linear regression was used to identify demographic and PMT variables that were associated with sun-protective practices and intention. one percent of participants always wore a hat with a brim, 3.5% gloves and 15.9% sunglasses while outdoors. Only 10.9% regularly had their skin checked by a doctor. Perceived rewards, response efficacy, fear, self-efficacy and marital status were the five variables which could predict 39% variance of participants intention to perform sun-protective practices. Also, intention and response cost explained 31% of the variance of sun-protective practices. These predictive variables may be used to develop theory-based education interventions interventions to prevent skin cancer among college students.

Prevalence and determinants of Australian adolescents' and adults' weekend sun protection and sunburn, summer 2003-2004.

PubMed

Dobbinson, Suzanne; Wakefield, Melanie; Hill, David; Girgis, Afaf; Aitken, Joanne F; Beckmann, Kerri; Reeder, Anthony I; Herd, Natalie; Fairthorne, Andrew; Bowles, Kelly-Ann

2008-10-01

Reducing people's exposure to ultraviolet radiation is the primary strategy for skin cancer prevention. We sought to provide comprehensive national data on preventive behaviors and risk assessment for Australia. A national survey was conducted in summer 2003-2004. In 8 weekly cross-sectional surveys, adults and adolescents were interviewed about their sun protection and sunburn on the previous summer weekend. Adjustments were made for specific weather and ultraviolet radiation conditions relevant to time and location. Adolescents were relatively homogeneous in their low compliance with sun protection (significantly less use of hats, covering clothing, shade, and sunglasses than adults) on weekends, and consequently were more likely to be sunburned than adults (25% compared with 18%; odds ratio=1.80, P<.001). Temperature was a significant predictor of sun-protective behaviors and a strong determinant of sunburn, as was ultraviolet radiation for adults' sunburn. Using shade, spending less time outdoors, and, for adults, wearing clothing covering were associated with reduced odds of sunburn. The study relied on self-reported behaviors and sunburn. Further improvement in Australians' sun-protective behaviors is needed.

Ultraviolet and short wavelength visible light exposure: why ultraviolet protection alone is not adequate.

PubMed

Reichow, Alan W; Citek, Karl; Edlich, Richard F

2006-01-01

The danger of exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation in both the natural environment and artificial occupational settings has long been recognized by national and international standards committees and worker safety agencies. There is an increasing body of literature that suggests that protection from UV exposure is not enough. Unprotected exposure to the short wavelengths of the visible spectrum, termed the "blue light hazard", is gaining acceptance as a true risk to long-term visual health. Global standards and experts in the field are now warning that those individuals who spend considerable time outdoors should seek sun filter eyewear with high impact resistant lenses that provide 100% UV filtration, high levels of blue light filtration, and full visual field lens/frame coverage as provided by high wrap eyewear. The Skin Cancer Foundation has endorsed certain sunglasses as "product[s]...effective [as] UV filter[s] for the eyes and surrounding skin". However, such endorsement does not necessarily mean that the eyewear meets all the protective needs for outdoor use. There are several brands that offer products with such protective characteristics. Performance sun eyewear by Nike Vision, available in both corrective and plano (nonprescription) forms, is one such brand incorporating these protective features.

Measured occupational solar UVR exposures of lifeguards in pool settings.

PubMed

Gies, Peter; Glanz, Karen; O'Riordan, David; Elliott, Tom; Nehl, Eric

2009-08-01

The aim of this study was to measure ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposures of lifeguards in pool settings and evaluate their personal UVR protective practices. Lifeguards (n = 168) wore UVR sensitive polysulfone (PS) film badges in wrist bracelets on 2 days and completed a survey and diary covering sun protection use. Analyses were used to describe sun exposure and sun protection practices, to compare UVR exposure across locations, and to compare findings with recommended threshold limits for occupational exposure. The measured UVR exposures varied with location, ranging from high median UVR exposures of 6.2 standard erythemal doses (SEDs) to the lowest median of 1.7 SEDs. More than 74% of the lifeguards' PS badges showed UVR above recommended threshold limits for occupational exposure. Thirty-nine percent received more than four times the limit and 65% of cases were sufficient to induce sunburn. The most common protective behaviors were wearing sunglasses and using sunscreen, but sun protection was often inadequate. At-risk individuals were exposed to high levels of UVR in excess of occupational limits and though appropriate types of sun protection were used, it was not used consistently and more than 50% of lifeguards reported being sunburnt at least twice during the previous year.

Coping with dry eyes: a qualitative approach.

PubMed

Yeo, Sharon; Tong, Louis

2018-01-16

Dry eye is a common problem that affects many people worldwide, reducing quality of life and impacting daily activities. A qualitative approach often used in medicine and other disciplines is used to evaluate how people with dry eye cope with this impact. Six focus group sessions were conducted at the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC), premises of an eye research institute. These focus groups consist of a spectrum of dry eye sufferers (30 women, 8 men, aged 61 ± 11.8 years). Standard methods of coding followed by determination of themes were adhered to. Where classification was difficult, consensus was made between 3 assessors. Audio-recorded transcripts were coded in 10 themes by 3 assessors independently. Four of the themes involved traditional measures such as lid warming, cleansing, lubrication and oral dietary supplements. The other themes discovered were Traditional Chinese Medicine, modification of eye-care habits (e.g. wearing sunglasses), environmental humidity, lifestyle (e.g. sleeping habits), psychological attitude, and lastly sharing and communication. Holistic coping strategies were found to be prominent in dry eye sufferers from these focus groups, and people tend to find personalised ways of coping with the impact of dry eye on daily living.

A Pilot Study of the Validity of Self-reported Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure and Sun Protection Practices Among Lifeguards, Parents and Children

PubMed Central

O’Riordan, David L.; Glanz, Karen; Gies, Peter; Elliott, Tom

2013-01-01

Outdoor recreation settings, such as swimming pools, provide a promising venue to assess UVR exposure and sun protection practices among individuals who are minimally clothed and exposed to potentially high levels of UVR. Most studies assessing sun exposure/protection practices rely on self-reported data, which are subject to bias. The aim of this study was to establish the feasibility of conducting a multimethod study to examine the validity of self-reported measures within a swimming pool setting. Data were collected from 27 lifeguards, children and parents in Hawaii. Each participant filled out a survey and a 4 day sun habits diary. On two occasions, researchers assessed observable sun protection behaviors (wearing hats, shirts, sunglasses), swabbed the skin to detect the presence of sunscreen, and subjects wore polysulphone dosimeters to measure UVR exposure. Overall, observed sun protection behaviors were more highly correlated with diary reports than with survey reports. While lifeguards and children reported spending comparable amounts of time in the sun, dosimeter measures showed that lifeguards received twice as much UVR exposure. This study demonstrated the feasibility of implementing a multimethod validity study within a broader population of swimming pools. PMID:18179624

A review of head-worn display research at NASA Langley Research Center

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arthur, Jarvis J.; Bailey, Randall E.; Williams, Steven P.; Prinzel, Lawrence J.; Shelton, Kevin J.; Jones, Denise R.; Houston, Vincent

2015-05-01

NASA Langley has conducted research in the area of helmet-mounted/head-worn displays over the past 30 years. Initially, NASA Langley's research focused on military applications, but recently has conducted a line of research in the area of head-worn displays for commercial and business aircraft. This work has revolved around numerous simulation experiments as well as flight tests to develop technology and data for industry and regulatory guidance. The paper summarizes the results of NASA's helmet-mounted/head-worn display research. Of note, the work tracks progress in wearable collimated optics, head tracking, latency reduction, and weight. The research lends credence that a small, sunglasses-type form factor of the head-worn display would be acceptable to commercial pilots, and this goal is now becoming technologically feasible. The research further suggests that a head-worn display may serve as an "equivalent" Head-Up Display (HUD) with safety, operational, and cost benefits. "HUD equivalence" appears to be the economic avenue by which head-worn displays can become main-stream on the commercial and business aircraft flight deck. If this happens, NASA's research suggests that additional operational benefits using the unique capabilities of the head-worn display can open up new operational paradigms.

Review of head-worn displays for the Next Generation Air Transportation System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arthur, Jarvis (Trey) J.; Bailey, Randall E.; Williams, Steven P.; Prinzel, Lawrence J.; Shelton, Kevin J.; Jones, Denise R.; Houston, Vincent E.

2017-05-01

NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) has conducted research in the area of helmet-mounted display (HMD)/head-worn display (HWD) over the past 30 years. Initially, NASA LaRC's research focused on military applications, but recently NASA has conducted a line of research in the area of HWD for commercial and business aircraft. This work revolved around numerous simulation experiments as well as flight tests to develop technology and data for industry and regulatory guidance. This paper summarizes the results of NASA's HMD/HWD research. Of note, the work tracks progress in wearable collimated optics, head tracking, latency reduction, and weight. The research lends credence to a small, sunglasses-type form factor of the HWD being acceptable to commercial pilots, and this goal is now becoming technologically feasible. The research further suggests that an HWD may serve as an "equivalent" head-up display (HUD) with safety, operational, and cost benefits. "HUD equivalence" appears to be the economic avenue by which HWDs can become mainstream on the commercial and business aircraft flight deck. If this happens, NASA's research suggests that additional operational benefits using the unique capabilities of the HWD can open up new operational paradigms.

NASA Technologies that Benefit Society

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Griffin, Amanda

2012-01-01

Applications developed on Earth of technology needed for space flight have produced thousands of spinoffs that contribute to improving national security, the economy, productivity and lifestyle. Over the course of it s history, NASA has nurtured partnerships with the private sector to facilitate the transfer of NASA-developed technology. For every dollar spent on research and development in the space program, it receives back $7 back in the form of corporate and personal income taxes from increased jobs and economic growth. A new technology, known as Liquid-metal alloy, is the result of a project funded by NASA s Jet Propulsion Lab. The unique technology is a blend of titanium, zirconium, nickel, copper and beryllium that achieves a strength greater than titanium. NASA plans to use this metal in the construction of a drill that will help for the search of water beneath the surface of Mars. Many other applications include opportunities in aerospace, defense, military, automotive, medical instrumentation and sporting goods.Developed in the 1980 s, the original Sun Tigers Inc sunlight-filtering lens has withstood the test of time. This technology was first reported in 1987 by NASA s JPL. Two scientists from JPL were later tasked with studying the harmful effects of radiation produced during laser and welding work. They came up with a transparent welding curtain that absorbs, filters and scatters light to maximize protection of human eyes. The two scientists then began doing business as Eagle Eye Optics. Each pair of sunglasses comes complete with ultraviolet protection, dual layer scratch resistant coating, polarized filters for maximum protection against glare and high visual clarity. Sufficient evidence shows that damage to the eye, especially to the retina, starts much earlier than most people realize. Sun filtering sunglasses are important. Winglets seen at the tips of airplane wings are among aviations most visible fuel-saving, performance enhancing technology. Aerodynamics centers on two majors forces-lift and drag. Lift enables the plane to fly and drag is the resistance encountered while moving through the air. The air coming off the end of a standard wing, in a vortex, causes significant drag and turbulence, forcing the spacing between takeoffs. A Langley engineer for NASA published finding in 1976 and verified by test in 1977 that winglets produce a 7 percent increase in lift-drag ratio with a 20 percent decrease in drag. This configuration reduces emissions, allows for greater range and carry more payload and the planes fly more quietly. Winglet technology has saved 2 billion gallons of jet fuel worldwide in 2010. Aerogel represents what technology experts believe to be the best insulation material ever invented. It is very light, flexible and can withstand temperatures of minus 3000 deg F. Aerogel products will be found in everything from clothing, to building insulation to space vehicles. Corpo Nove incorporated the Spaceloft version of the NASA-developed aerogel material into this jacket which was test during an Antarctic expedition.

Eye problems in mountain and remote areas: prevention and onsite treatment--official recommendations of the International Commission for Mountain Emergency Medicine ICAR MEDCOM.

PubMed

Ellerton, John A; Zuljan, Igor; Agazzi, Giancelso; Boyd, Jeffrey J

2009-01-01

Although eyes are not frequently injured in the mountains, they are exposed to many adverse factors from the environment. This article, intended for first responders, paramedics, physicians, and mountaineers, is the consensus opinion of the International Commission for Mountain Emergency Medicine (ICAR-MEDCOM). Its aim is to give practical advice on the management of eye problems in mountainous and remote areas. Snow blindness and minor injuries, such as conjunctival and corneal foreign bodies, could immobilize a person and put him or her at risk of other injuries. Blunt or penetrating trauma can result in the loss of sight in the eye; this may be preventable if the injury is managed properly. In almost all cases of severe eye trauma, protecting the eye and arranging an immediate evacuation are necessary. The most common eye problems, however, are due to ultraviolet light and high altitude. People wearing contact lenses and with previous history of eye diseases are more vulnerable. Any sight-threatening eye problem or unexplained visual loss at high altitude necessitates descent. Wearing appropriate eye protection, such as sunglasses with sidepieces and goggles with polarized or photochromic lenses, could prevent most of the common eye problems in mountaineering.

Work-time sun behaviours among Canadian outdoor workers: results from the 2006 National Sun Survey.

PubMed

Marrett, Loraine D; Pichora, Erin C; Costa, Michelle L

2010-01-01

The objective of the study was to describe summer work-related sun behaviours among Canadian outdoor workers. Information on time in the sun and sun protection practices at work during the summer of 2006 were collected from 1,337 outdoor workers aged 16-64 years as part of the Second National Sun Survey. Proportions (and 95% confidence intervals) were estimated using procedures appropriate for complex survey designs. Twenty-six percent of all Canadians, 39% of males and 33% of those aged 16-24 years work outdoors during the summer. Although 41% spend four or more hours daily in the sun at work, just over half always or often protect themselves by covering their heads (58%), wearing protective clothing (56%) or wearing sunglasses (54%), and only 29% use sunscreen. Males and those aged 16-24 spend the most work time in the sun but are the least likely to use protection. The prevalence of outdoor work and sun behaviours varies among regions. Study findings confirm the need for strategies to reduce time in the sun and increase the use of sun protection among outdoor workers. In order to be effective, these strategies must include both enhanced workplace policies and practice, and increased individual use of sun protection.

Effect of work-related ultraviolet exposure and ophthalmic changes in Austrian farmers: the SVB-UV study.

PubMed

Schmid-Kubista, Katharina E; Kellner, Lukas; Maier, Harald; Felke, Stefan; Wanka, Alexandra; El Modeir, Adel; Schmidt, Jolanta B; Cabaj, Alexander; Schmalwieser, Alois; Rohn, Herbert; Stadelmann, Heinrich; Spiess, Johannes; Fischer, Wolfgang; Hönigsmann, Herbert; Binder, Susanne

2010-01-01

Epidemiological screening to examine possible ultraviolet-induced ocular changes and pathologies in Austrian farmers. The study was performed on behalf of the Austrian farmer insurance (Sozialversicherungsanstalt der Bauern). Randomly selected farmers and office workers as controls, both at the age of 35-55 years, underwent ophthalmic screening examinations. All subjects underwent complete ophthalmic examinations by slit lamp examination and Schirmer's test 1. A survey, regarding personal habits in the sun, was also conducted. Three hundred and ninety-two subjects underwent ophthalmic examinations of whom 297 were farmers and 95 were controls. Due to the survey, 89.7% of the farmers claimed to protect themselves from the sun during work. From these subjects, 83.7% wear a head protection, 71.0% wear sunglasses, and 54.4% usually work in the shade. There were significant differences in lid (p = 0.021) and conjunctival pathologies (p < 0.0001) between farmers and controls. Austrian farmers are at a higher risk for developing lid and conjunctival tumours which require treatment at some point. We believe that the study group was too young to show significant differences within the lens and the posterior pole. A 5-year follow-up is planned. Copyright 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel.

A Review of Head-Worn Display Research at NASA Langley Research Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arthur, Jarvis (Trey) J., III; Bailey, Randall E.; Williams, Steven P.; Prinzel, Lawrence J., III; Shelton, Kevin J.; Jones, Denise R.; Houston, Vincent

2015-01-01

NASA Langley has conducted research in the area of helmet-mounted/head-worn displays over the past 30 years. Initially, NASA Langley's research focused on military applications, but recently it has conducted a line of research in the area of head-worn displays for commercial and business aircraft. This work has revolved around numerous simulation experiments as well as flight tests to develop technology and data for industry and regulatory guidance. The paper summarizes the results of NASA's helmet-mounted/head-worn display research. Of note, the work tracks progress in wearable collimated optics, head tracking, latency reduction, and weight. The research lends credence that a small, sunglasses-type form factor of the head-worn display would be acceptable to commercial pilots, and this goal is now becoming technologically feasible. The research further suggests that a head-worn display may serve as an "equivalent" Head-Up Display (HUD) with safety, operational, and cost benefits. "HUD equivalence" appears to be the economic avenue by which head-worn displays can become main-stream on the commercial and business aircraft flight deck. If this happens, NASA's research suggests that additional operational benefits using the unique capabilities of the head-worn display can open up new operational paradigms.

Translation of a Ski School Sun Safety Program to North American Ski and Snowboard Schools.

PubMed

Walkosz, Barbara J; Buller, David B; Andersen, Peter A; Scott, M D; Liu, X; Cutter, G R; Dignan, M B

2015-07-01

Health promotion programs that develop and implement strategies to promote sun safety practices to children have the potential to reduce skin cancer occurrence later in life. Go Sun Smart (GSS), a sun safety program for employees and guests of ski areas, was distributed to determine if an enhanced dissemination strategy was more effective than a basic dissemination strategy at reaching parents at ski and snowboard schools. On-site observations of GSS use and surveys of 909 parents/caregivers with children enrolled in ski and snowboard schools at 63 ski areas were conducted and analyzed using techniques for clustered designs. No differences were identified by dissemination strategy. Greater implementation of GSS (>5 messages posted) was associated with greater parental recall, 36.6% versus 16.7%, of materials, but not greater sun protection practices. Greater recall of messages, regardless of level of implementation, resulted in greater sun protection practices including applying sunscreen (p < .05), providing sunglasses and goggles (p < .01), and more use of all sun protection practices (p < .01). Ski areas with more program materials appeared to reach parents with sun safety advice and thus convinced them to take more precautions for their children. Sun safety need not be at odds with children's outdoor recreation activities. © 2015 Society for Public Health Education.

Shift work: health, performance and safety problems, traditional countermeasures, and innovative management strategies to reduce circadian misalignment

PubMed Central

Smith, Mark R; Eastman, Charmane I

2012-01-01

There are three mechanisms that may contribute to the health, performance, and safety problems associated with night-shift work: (1) circadian misalignment between the internal circadian clock and activities such as work, sleep, and eating, (2) chronic, partial sleep deprivation, and (3) melatonin suppression by light at night. The typical countermeasures, such as caffeine, naps, and melatonin (for its sleep-promoting effect), along with education about sleep and circadian rhythms, are the components of most fatigue risk-management plans. We contend that these, while better than nothing, are not enough because they do not address the underlying cause of the problems, which is circadian misalignment. We explain how to reset (phase-shift) the circadian clock to partially align with the night-work, day-sleep schedule, and thus reduce circadian misalignment while preserving sleep and functioning on days off. This involves controlling light and dark using outdoor light exposure, sunglasses, sleep in the dark, and a little bright light during night work. We present a diagram of a sleep-and-light schedule to reduce circadian misalignment in permanent night work, or a rotation between evenings and nights, and give practical advice on how to implement this type of plan. PMID:23620685

Shatter resistance of spectacle lenses.

PubMed

Vinger, P F; Parver, L; Alfaro, D V; Woods, T; Abrams, B S

1997-01-08

To evaluate the relative strength and shatter resistance of spectacle lenses currently used in sunglasses and dress, sports, and industrial eyewear. Seven lenses that met the US American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Z80 standards for dress glasses (made of high-index plastic, allyl resin plastic, heat tempered glass, chemically tempered glass, and polycarbonate, and with center thickness ranging from 1 mm to 2.2 mm) and 4 lenses that met ANSI Z87 standards for industrial safety eyewear (allyl resin plastic, heat-tempered glass, chemically tempered glass, and polycarbonate, all with 3.0-mm center thickness) were tested for impact resistance to 5 projectiles (air gun pellets, golf balls, tennis balls, lacrosse balls, and baseballs). Impact energy required to shatter spectacle lenses. Based on 348 lens impacts, dress and industrial lenses made from glass, allyl resin plastic, and high-index plastic shattered at impact energies less than those expected to be encountered from the test projectiles during their routine use. Polycarbonate lenses demonstrated resistance to impact for all tested projectiles exceeding the impact potential expected during routine use. Under the test conditions of this study, polycarbonate lenses demonstrated greater impact resistance than other commonly used spectacle lenses that conform to prevailing eyewear standards. These findings suggest that current ANSI Z80 and ANSI Z87 standards should be reevaluated.

Efficacy and durability of ultraviolet tints in CR-39 ophthalmic lenses.

PubMed

Lee, D Y; Brown, W L; Trachimowicz, R

1997-11-01

Ocular protection from solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation has been emphasized in recent years as a result of the thinning of the ozone layer in the atmosphere. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the absorptive properties of UV tints in CR-39 lenses. We used a spectrophotometer to measure the UV transmittance of three groups of UV tinted CR-39 lenses, including (1) lenses tinted by local optical laboratories: (2) lenses tinted by us, using commercially available dyes: and (3) stock UV lenses that have UV absorptive molecules throughout the lens. We also tested the durability of these tints to daily washing/drying by measuring their UV transmittance characteristics at 3, 6, and 12 months. All the tested lenses absorbed all of the UV-B and at least 99% of UV-A. The durability of these UV tints when exposed to daily washing/drying was excellent: all lenses continued to absorb all of the UV-B and at least 99% of UV-A after 1 year. These data suggest that UV tinted CR-39 lenses provide protection against UV radiation that meets the ANSI Z80.3-1996 Standard for non-prescription sunglasses and fashion eyewear. Furthermore, normal daily washing/drying for 1 year does not cause a significant decrease in the protective effect of the UV tint.

Measured Occupational Solar UVR Exposures of Lifeguards in Pool Settings

PubMed Central

Gies, Peter; Glanz, Karen; O’Riordan, David; Elliott, Tom; Nehl, Eric

2013-01-01

Background The aim of this study was to measure ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposures of lifeguards in pool settings and evaluate their personal UVR protective practices. Methods Lifeguards (n = 168) wore UVR sensitive polysulfone (PS) film badges in wrist bracelets on 2 days and completed a survey and diary covering sun protection use. Analyses were used to describe sun exposure and sun protection practices, to compare UVR exposure across locations, and to compare findings with recommended threshold limits for occupational exposure. Results The measured UVR exposures varied with location, ranging from high median UVR exposures of 6.2 standard erythemal doses (SEDs) to the lowest median of 1.7 SEDs. More than 74% of the lifeguards’ PS badges showed UVR above recommended threshold limits for occupational exposure. Thirty-nine percent received more than four times the limit and 65% of cases were sufficient to induce sunburn. The most common protective behaviors were wearing sunglasses and using sunscreen, but sun protection was often inadequate. Conclusions At-risk individuals were exposed to high levels of UVR in excess of occupational limits and though appropriate types of sun protection were used, it was not used consistently and more than 50% of lifeguards reported being sunburnt at least twice during the previous year. PMID:19572325

UV imaging reveals facial areas that are prone to skin cancer are disproportionately missed during sunscreen application.

PubMed

Pratt, Harry; Hassanin, Kareem; Troughton, Lee D; Czanner, Gabriela; Zheng, Yalin; McCormick, Austin G; Hamill, Kevin J

2017-01-01

Application of sunscreen is a widely used mechanism for protecting skin from the harmful effects of UV light. However, protection can only be achieved through effective application, and areas that are routinely missed are likely at increased risk of UV damage. Here we sought to determine if specific areas of the face are missed during routine sunscreen application, and whether provision of public health information is sufficient to improve coverage. To investigate this, 57 participants were imaged with a UV sensitive camera before and after sunscreen application: first visit; minimal pre-instruction, second visit; provided with a public health information statement. Images were scored using a custom automated image analysis process designed to identify areas of high UV reflectance, i.e. missed during sunscreen application, and analysed for 5% significance. Analyses revealed eyelid and periorbital regions to be disproportionately missed during routine sunscreen application (median 14% missed in eyelid region vs 7% in rest of face, p<0.01). Provision of health information caused a significant improvement in coverage to eyelid areas in general however, the medial canthal area was still frequently missed. These data reveal that a public health announcement-type intervention could be effective at improving coverage of high risk areas of the face, however high risk areas are likely to remain unprotected therefore other mechanisms of sun protection should be widely promoted such as UV blocking sunglasses.

Reversible Self-Assembly of 3D Architectures Actuated by Responsive Polymers.

PubMed

Zhang, Cheng; Su, Jheng-Wun; Deng, Heng; Xie, Yunchao; Yan, Zheng; Lin, Jian

2017-11-29

An assembly of three-dimensional (3D) architectures with defined configurations has important applications in broad areas. Among various approaches of constructing 3D structures, a stress-driven assembly provides the capabilities of creating 3D architectures in a broad range of functional materials with unique merits. However, 3D architectures built via previous methods are simple, irreversible, or not free-standing. Furthermore, the substrates employed for the assembly remain flat, thus not involved as parts of the final 3D architectures. Herein, we report a reversible self-assembly of various free-standing 3D architectures actuated by the self-folding of smart polymer substrates with programmed geometries. The strategically designed polymer substrates can respond to external stimuli, such as organic solvents, to initiate the 3D assembly process and subsequently become the parts of the final 3D architectures. The self-assembly process is highly controllable via origami and kirigami designs patterned by direct laser writing. Self-assembled geometries include 3D architectures such as "flower", "rainbow", "sunglasses", "box", "pyramid", "grating", and "armchair". The reported self-assembly also shows wide applicability to various materials including epoxy, polyimide, laser-induced graphene, and metal films. The device examples include 3D architectures integrated with a micro light-emitting diode and a flex sensor, indicting the potential applications in soft robotics, bioelectronics, microelectromechanical systems, and others.

Determinants of inadequate parental sun protection behaviour in their children--results of a cross-sectional study in Germany.

PubMed

Klostermann, Swaantje; Bolte, Gabriele

2014-03-01

Unprotected sun exposure especially during childhood is a risk factor for skin cancer. A combined use of sun protection measures is recommended to protect children. However, the prevalence and determinants for combined use have been scarcely studied in children. The objective of this study was to identify determinants of parental sun protection behaviour. A cross-sectional survey was performed in five regions in Bavaria (Germany) during school entrance health examination (2010/2011). Parents of 4579 children (47% female, aged 5-6 years) completed a self-administered questionnaire (response 61%). Most children were regularly protected with single measures (shade (69%), clothes (80%), hat (83%), sunscreen (89%), sunglasses (20%)). However, regarding regular and combined use, >50% of children were inadequately protected. Larger family size, lower household equivalent income, darker skin and sunburn history were associated with inadequate use of different sun protection measures. The less frequent use of one sun protection measure was associated with less frequent use of the others. Child's sex, migration background, parental education and sun exposure showed inconsistent results regarding the different sun protection outcomes. Based on our results a regular, combined and correct use of multiple sun protection for children should be promoted independent of sociodemographic characteristics. Priority of shade, clothes and hat before sunscreen should be clarified. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Sun-exposure knowledge and protection behavior in a North Chinese population: a questionnaire-based study.

PubMed

Cheng, Shaowei; Lian, Shi; Hao, Yongjing; Kang, Nan; Li, Shujuan; Nie, Yanjun; Zhang, Fan

2010-08-01

Sun exposure can cause a range of skin disorders. Skin damage can be prevented by following certain sun-protection measures. However, the majority of reported studies regarding sun-exposure knowledge and behavior have involved Caucasian populations. A self-administered multiple-choice questionnaire was administered. The questionnaire consisted of 13 questions aimed at evaluating people's knowledge, awareness, and protection behavior regarding sun exposure, and their knowledge of sunscreens and sunscreen use. A total of 623 volunteers were enrolled, including 238 men (38.2%) and 385 women (61.8%). The percentages of correct answers regarding sun-exposure knowledge and awareness ranged from 50% to 80%. Overall, 58.8% used sunscreen as a sun-protection measure in daily life, followed by use of protective clothes (49.3%), sun umbrella (45.4%), sunglasses (45.3%), and hat (42.2%). Fifty-two percent thought that suntan was harmful or not attractive. The mean sun-protection factor (SPF) of the sunscreens used was 27.7 +/- 9.2 and the mean UVA protection grade (PA) was 2.3 +/- 0.6. Knowledge and awareness concerning the harmful effects of sun exposure are widespread among the Chinese population. Sunscreens with high SPF and PA are the most commonly used among Chinese people. Clear sex differences were observed. There is a significant difference in the attitude toward suntan between Chinese and Caucasian populations.

Skin Cancer-Sun Knowledge and Sun Protection Behaviors of Liver Transplant Recipients in Turkey.

PubMed

Haney, Meryem Ozturk; Ordin, Yaprak Sarigol; Arkan, Gulcihan

2017-09-08

The aim of this study was to compare liver transplant recipients (LTRs) with the general population regarding their knowledge of skin cancer, sun health, sun protection behaviors, and affecting factors. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Turkey between March 2016 and September 2016 with 104 LTRs and 100 participants from the general population group (GPG). The mean age of the LTRs was 53.2 ± 11.8 and that of the GPG was 42.7 ± 14.5. The LTRs' skin cancer and sun knowledge were significantly lower than in the GPG, but there was no difference between the two groups in terms of their sun protection behavior scores. The most commonly used sun protection behaviors of LTRs were not being outside and not sunbathing between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., wearing clothing that covers the skin, and avoiding the solarium. Behaviors commonly practiced by the GPG were wearing sunglasses, wearing sunscreen with a sun protection factor of 15 or higher before going outside, wearing sunscreen at the beach, while swimming or doing physical activity outside, and reapplying it every 2 h. Results of our study will contribute to the development of education and training programs for LTRs on skin cancer. The results also demonstrated the importance of practicing adequate sun protection behaviors which will certainly impact their future health.

Baseline survey of sun-protection knowledge, practices and policy in early childhood settings in Queensland, Australia.

PubMed

Harrison, Simone L; Saunders, V; Nowak, M

2007-04-01

Excessive exposure to sunlight during early childhood increases the risk of developing skin cancer. Self-administered questionnaires exploring sun-protection knowledge, practices and policy were mailed to the directors/coordinators/senior teachers of all known early childhood services in Queensland, Australia, in 2002 (n = 1383; 56.5% response). Most (73.7%) services had a written sun-protection policy (SPP). However, 40.6% of pre-schools and kindergartens had not developed a written SPP. Most directors had moderate knowledge about sun-protection (median score: 7/12 [IQR 6, 8]), but few understood the UV index, the sun-protection factor rating for sunscreens or the association between childhood sun-exposure, mole development and melanoma. Pre-school teachers had lower knowledge scores than directors of long day care centers and other services (P = 0.0005). Staff members reportedly wore sun-protective hats, clothing and sunglasses more often than children. However, sunscreen use was higher among children than staff. Directors' knowledge scores predicted reported hat, clothing, sunscreen and shade utilization among children. Remoteness impacted negatively on director's knowledge (P = 0.043) and written SPP development (P = 0.0005). Higher composite sun-protection scores were reported for children and staff from services with written sun-protection policies. SPP development and increased sun-protection knowledge of directors may improve reported sun-protective behaviors of children and staff of early childhood services.

Variations of cosmic large-scale structure covariance matrices across parameter space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reischke, Robert; Kiessling, Alina; Schäfer, Björn Malte

2017-03-01

The likelihood function for cosmological parameters, given by e.g. weak lensing shear measurements, depends on contributions to the covariance induced by the non-linear evolution of the cosmic web. As highly non-linear clustering to date has only been described by numerical N-body simulations in a reliable and sufficiently precise way, the necessary computational costs for estimating those covariances at different points in parameter space are tremendous. In this work, we describe the change of the matter covariance and the weak lensing covariance matrix as a function of cosmological parameters by constructing a suitable basis, where we model the contribution to the covariance from non-linear structure formation using Eulerian perturbation theory at third order. We show that our formalism is capable of dealing with large matrices and reproduces expected degeneracies and scaling with cosmological parameters in a reliable way. Comparing our analytical results to numerical simulations, we find that the method describes the variation of the covariance matrix found in the SUNGLASS weak lensing simulation pipeline within the errors at one-loop and tree-level for the spectrum and the trispectrum, respectively, for multipoles up to ℓ ≤ 1300. We show that it is possible to optimize the sampling of parameter space where numerical simulations should be carried out by minimizing interpolation errors and propose a corresponding method to distribute points in parameter space in an economical way.

Calculating Solar Ultraviolet Irradiation Of The Human Cornea And Corresponding Required Sunglass Lens Transmittances

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoover, Herbert L.; Marsaud, Serge G.

1986-05-01

Tinted ophthalmic lenses are used primarily for eye comfort in a brightly lit environment. An ancillary benefit is the attenuation of ultraviolet radiation. Some national product standards specify quantitative limits for ultraviolet transmittances. Such limits ought to be founded on quantitative estimates of solar irradiances of ocular tissues, with actinic effectiveness taken into account. We use the equations of Green and coworkers for direct and diffuse solar irradiance at the earth's surface to calculate average sky and ground spectral radiances. We use the geometric factors derived by us for the coupling of radiation from these sources to the human cornea. Actinically weighted corneal spectral irradiances integrated over wavelength and time yield peak irradiances and accumulated exposure doses that are compared with recommended exposure limits. This provides the maximal effective ultraviolet transmittances of tinted ophthalmic lenses such that these exposure limits will not be exceeded in the selected exposure environment. The influences on corneal irradiation of such exposure parameters as solar zenith angle, altitude of the exposure site, characteristics of atmospheric aerosols, and ground reflectances are illustrated. The relationships between the effective transmittance (which is a function of the environmental radiation and any actinicweighting function) and readily determined characteristics of the lens itself, viz., its mean transmittance, and a selected spectral transmittance, are derived for three lens transmittance curves. Limits of lens transmittance for the UV-B and UV-A wavelength regions are presented for several representative exposure sites in Europe and the U.S.A.

Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain.

PubMed

Madgwick, P; Houdmont, J; Randall, R

2011-09-01

Relative to other occupational groups in Britain, construction workers have a high incidence of skin cancer attributable to sun exposure. The importance of sun safety measures to minimize the risk of skin cancer is recognized in the literature; however, little is known about the factors associated with their use by construction workers. Knowledge in this area could help inform interventions to encourage sun safety behaviour within the sector. To investigate socio-demographic and occupational characteristics associated with the use of sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain. Data collection was by means of a self-administered questionnaire, which was sent to 360 construction workers. Information collected included socio-demographic and occupational characteristics and the use of sun safety measures. Participants worked outdoors for an average of 6.6 h/day. Three specific sun safety measures were used by the majority of respondents. Logistic regression analyses showed that certain socio-demographic and occupational factors were associated with the use of sun safety measures. In particular, receipt of sun safety training was positively associated with the wearing of long sleeved, loose fitting tops and trousers (OR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.02-2.80) and sunglasses (OR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.10-3.13). The results highlight the importance of employer-led sun safety interventions in the British construction industry. Interventions that take account of demographic and occupational characteristics are likely to have a positive impact in terms of improving workers' use of sun safety measures.

UV imaging reveals facial areas that are prone to skin cancer are disproportionately missed during sunscreen application

PubMed Central

Troughton, Lee D.; Czanner, Gabriela; Zheng, Yalin; McCormick, Austin G.

2017-01-01

Application of sunscreen is a widely used mechanism for protecting skin from the harmful effects of UV light. However, protection can only be achieved through effective application, and areas that are routinely missed are likely at increased risk of UV damage. Here we sought to determine if specific areas of the face are missed during routine sunscreen application, and whether provision of public health information is sufficient to improve coverage. To investigate this, 57 participants were imaged with a UV sensitive camera before and after sunscreen application: first visit; minimal pre-instruction, second visit; provided with a public health information statement. Images were scored using a custom automated image analysis process designed to identify areas of high UV reflectance, i.e. missed during sunscreen application, and analysed for 5% significance. Analyses revealed eyelid and periorbital regions to be disproportionately missed during routine sunscreen application (median 14% missed in eyelid region vs 7% in rest of face, p<0.01). Provision of health information caused a significant improvement in coverage to eyelid areas in general however, the medial canthal area was still frequently missed. These data reveal that a public health announcement-type intervention could be effective at improving coverage of high risk areas of the face, however high risk areas are likely to remain unprotected therefore other mechanisms of sun protection should be widely promoted such as UV blocking sunglasses. PMID:28968413

No need to fake it: reproduction of the Asch experiment without confederates.

PubMed

Mori, Kazuo; Arai, Miho

2010-10-01

In the present experiment, we replicated Asch's seminal study on social conformity without using confederates. We adapted a presentation trick in order to present two different stimuli secretly to groups of participants to create minorities and majorities without utilizing confederates. One hundred and four Japanese undergraduates (40 men and 64 women) carried out Asch-equivalent tasks in same-sex groups of four. In each group, we adapted the fMORI Technique to present the tasks such that one person (minority participant) observed different stimuli than the other three people (majority participants). The same nine stimulus sets that Asch had used were carefully reproduced as PowerPoint slides and projected onto a half-transparent screen. As for the critical tasks, the top part of the standard lines appeared in either green or magenta so that two groups of participants would see them differently when they wore two types of polarizing sunglasses that filtered either green or magenta to make the lines appear longer or shorter. A post-experimental questionnaire confirmed that no participant among either the minority or majority viewers noticed the presentation trick. The results showed that, in line with Asch's basic findings, the minority women participants conformed to the majority. However, our study produced two different results: While minority women conformed, minority men did not. Contrary to Asch's findings, the frequency of conformity of minority participants was almost the same regardless of whether the majority answered unanimously or not.

Occupational Ocular UV Exposure in Civilian Aircrew.

PubMed

Chorley, Adrian C; Baczynska, Katarzyna A; Benwell, Martin J; Evans, Bruce J W; Higlett, Michael P; Khazova, Marina; O'Hagan, John B

2016-01-01

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) increases with altitude; however, there are a number of other factors which may influence ocular exposure during flight. The aim of this study was to assess ocular UVR exposure of pilots in airline and off-shore helicopter operations on different aircraft types and to compare with exposure in a typical office environment. In-flight data were captured on equipment including a CCD array spectroradiometer on five return sector European airline flights and one transatlantic flight from London Gatwick in addition to four helicopter flights from Aberdeen Dyce airport. Further data were collected in an office environment from three workstations during summer and winter months. A wide variation in ocular UVA dose was found during flights. The main factor influencing exposure was the UVR transmission of the windshield, which fell into two distinct profile types. In an aircraft with good UVA blocking properties, ocular exposure was found to be equivalent to office exposure and did not exceed international guideline limits regardless of external conditions or flight time. Most aircraft assessed had poor UVA blocking windshields which resulted in an ocular exposure to the unprotected eye in excess of international guideline limits (up to between 4.5 to 6.5 times greater during one flight). No significant UVB dose was found. Pilots should be warned of the potential high UVA exposure during flight and advised on the use of sunglasses. A windshield labeling system would allow the pilot to tailor their eye protection practices to that particular aircraft.

HISTORY OF SUNLIGHT EXPOSURE IS A RISK FACTOR FOR AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION.

PubMed

Schick, Tina; Ersoy, Lebriz; Lechanteur, Yara T E; Saksens, Nicole T M; Hoyng, Carel B; den Hollander, Anneke I; Kirchhof, Bernd; Fauser, Sascha

2016-04-01

To evaluate effects of current and past sunlight exposure and iris color on early and late age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Of 3,701 individuals from the EUGENDA database, 752 (20.3%) showed early AMD, 1,179 (31.9%) late AMD, and 1,770 (47.8%) were controls. Information about current and past sunlight exposure, former occupation type, subdivided in indoor working and outdoor working, and iris color were obtained by standardized interviewer-assisted questionnaires. Associations between environmental factors adjusted for age, gender, and smoking and early and late AMD were performed by multivariate regression analysis. Current sunlight exposure showed no association with early AMD or late AMD, but past sunlight exposure (≥8 hours outside daily) was significantly associated with early AMD (odds ratio: 5.54, 95% confidence interval 1.25-24.58, P = 0.02) and late AMD (odds ratio: 2.77, 95% confidence interval 1.25-6.16, P = 0.01). Outside working was found to be associated with late AMD (odds ratio: 2.57, 95% confidence interval 1.89-3.48, P = 1.58 × 10). No association was observed between iris color and early or late AMD. Sunlight exposure during working life is an important risk factor for AMD, whereas sunlight exposure after retirement seems to have less influence on the disease development. Therefore, preventive measures, for example, wearing sunglasses to minimize sunlight exposure, should start early to prevent development of AMD later in life.

[Effectiveness of eyeglasses for protection against ultraviolet rays].

PubMed

Sakamoto, Y; Kojima, M; Sasaki, K

1999-05-01

The relationship between eyeglass size and protection of the eye surface from the effects of solar ultraviolet (UV) rays was investigated. Solar UV rays irradiating the eye surface were measured on a mannequin which modeled the standard facial bone structure of a Japanese female. UV sensor chips (photo-sensitivity: 260-400 nm) were attached to the ocular surface of the lid fissure. UV measurement was done from 12:00 to 15:00 on a sunny day in March. UV intensity was measured under the following conditions: 1) with or without eyeglasses, 2) wearing sunglasses with side protectors, and 3) wearing a cap with a 7 cm brim. Eyeglasses of four frame sizes (width: 48-57 mm) were put on the mannequin. All lenses were made of plastic and coated so as to be impervious to rays shorter than 400 nm. The refractive power was 0 diopters. At the same time, UV irradiation intensity from all directions (excluding from the earth direction) was measured using a polyhedron type UV sensor with 25 sensor chips. Except for eyeglasses with the smallest frame size, eyeglasses effectively reduced UV exposure to sunlight from the upper front direction. However, protection against rays from the upper temporal direction was extremely poor. Sunlight from the upper back was reflected by the posterior surface of the eyeglasses and reached the eye surface. The efficacy of eyeglasses against UV depends on their size. The shape of the eyeglasses and reflection from the posterior lens surface are also of great importance. Small eyeglasses do not offer ideal UV protection for the Japanese face shape.

Ultraviolet-B phototoxicity and hypothetical photomelanomagenesis: intraocular and crystalline lens photoprotection.

PubMed

Mainster, Martin A; Turner, Patricia L

2010-04-01

Ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation can cause phototoxic macular injuries in young people who have been sunbathing but not sungazing and in welders. Welders have a reportedly increased risk of uveal melanoma. We analyze phakic and pseudophakic risks for solar and welding arc UV-B exposure. Optical radiation measurement, analysis, and perspective. Spectral transmittances were measured for UV-transmitting, UV-blocking, and blue-blocking intraocular lenses (IOLs). The photoprotective performances of crystalline and intraocular lenses were analyzed using relevant epidemiologic and laboratory data and action spectra for acute retinal phototoxicity and melanoma photocarcinogenesis. Crystalline lens UV-B retinal protection is deficient in children and young adults, increasing their potential susceptibility to acute retinal phototoxicity and hypothetical photomelanomagenesis. UV-B radiation has sufficient energy/photon to induce primary melanomagenic DNA lesions, unlike blue light or UV-A radiation. UV-blocking and blue-blocking IOLs have negligible UV-B transmittance. UV-transmitting IOL transmittance of UV-B radiation is equivalent to that of a 15-year-old crystalline lens. If optical radiation exposure is responsible for welders' increased risk of uveal melanoma, then UV-B radiation is the most probable causative agent and spectacle wear is a potential confounding factor in epidemiologic studies of ocular melanoma. Welders under 30 years of age are at greater risk for welding maculopathy than older welders. Children, adults under 30 years of age, and pseudophakic individuals with UV-transmitting IOLs should wear sunglasses in bright environments because of the UV-B window in their crystalline lenses or IOLs. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sun safety knowledge and practice in UK postal delivery workers.

PubMed

Houdmont, J; Davis, S; Griffiths, A

2016-06-01

Postal delivery workers spend a large proportion of their work time outdoors, placing them at increased risk of skin cancer. To date, no studies have examined occupational sun safety knowledge and practice within this group in the UK. To describe the occupational sun safety knowledge and practice of UK postal delivery workers and to investigate the association of demographic, personal and occupational factors with knowledge and practice in order to identify potential strategies for improving sun safety in this occupational group. Postal delivery workers completed a questionnaire that collected data on occupational sun safety knowledge and practice in addition to demographic, personal and workplace characteristics. One-way analysis of variances were applied to assess differences in knowledge and practice by these characteristics. A total of 1153 postal delivery workers completed the questionnaire, a 60% response rate. Thirty-three per cent reported receiving sun safety training within the previous 12 months. The majority of respondents reported correct knowledge on three of the six domains and good practice on four of the six behavioural domains. However, only one-fifth of respondents reported wearing sunglasses and ensuring a plentiful intake of water. Knowledge and practice differed significantly according to demographic, personal and workplace characteristics. There is a need to raise the profile of occupational skin cancer in this occupational group and to increase the priority given to occupational sun safety policies alongside targeted and tailored interventions, the effect of which can be evaluated. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine.

Environmental variables associated with vacationers' sun protection at warm weather resorts in North America.

PubMed

Andersen, Peter A; Buller, David B; Walkosz, Barbara J; Scott, Michael D; Beck, Larry; Liu, Xia; Abbott, Allison; Eye, Rachel

2016-04-01

Vacationing at sunny, warm weather locations is a risk factor for excessive solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure and skin cancer. This study examined the association of environmental variables related to UV levels with vacationers' sun protection. Vacationers at 41 summer resorts in 17 states and 1 Canadian Province were interviewed (n=3531) and observed (N=4347) during 2012 and 2013. Clothing coverage, sunglasses, and shade use were observed. Use of sunscreen and sunburns were self-reported. Environmental information was recorded by research staff or acquired from ground stations and the weather service. Temperature was positively associated with sun protection behaviors; however clothing coverage was negatively associated with temperature. Cloud cover was negatively associated with sun protection, with the exception of clothing coverage which was positively associated with it. Elevation showed a mixed pattern of associations with vacationer's sun protection. Latitude of a resort was negatively associated with most sun protection behaviors, such that sun protection increased at more southerly resorts. Similarly, the farther south a vacationer traveled to the resort, the less sun protection they employed. The UV index showed a weak, positive relationship with some sun protection behaviors even when controlling for temperature. Vacationers appeared aware that UV is higher at southern latitudes and may learn UV is intense when living in southern regions. However, many used temperature, an unreliable cue, to judge UV intensity and seemed to adjust clothing for warmth not UV protection. Efforts are needed to help individuals make more accurate sun safety decisions. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Correlates of Sun Protection and Sunburn in Children of Melanoma Survivors.

PubMed

Tripp, Mary K; Peterson, Susan K; Prokhorov, Alexander V; Shete, Sanjay S; Lee, Jeffrey E; Gershenwald, Jeffrey E; Gritz, Ellen R

2016-09-01

Sunburns during childhood increase melanoma risk. Children of melanoma survivors are at higher risk, but little is known about their sunburn and sun protection. One study showed that almost half of melanoma survivors' children experienced sunburn in the past year. This study evaluated sunburn and sun protection in melanoma survivors' children, and relevant survivor characteristics from Social Cognitive Theory and the Health Belief Model. Melanoma survivors (N=340) were recruited from a comprehensive cancer center. Survivors completed a baseline questionnaire administered by telephone to report on the behavior of their children (N=340) as part of an RCT of a sun protection intervention. Data were collected in 2008 and analyzed in 2015. In the prior 6 months, 28% of children experienced sunburn. "Always" or "frequent" sun protection varied by behavior: sunscreen, 69%; lip balm, 15%; wide-brimmed hats, 9%; sleeved shirts, 28%; pants, 48%; sunglasses, 10%; shade, 33%; and limiting time outdoors, 45%. Survivors' sunburn and sun protection were positively associated with these outcomes in children. Correlates of sunburn also included older child age and higher risk perceptions. Correlates of sun protection behaviors included younger child age; stronger intentions, higher self-efficacy, and more positive outcome expectations about sun protection; and greater number of melanomas in survivors. Melanoma survivors may have a heightened awareness of the importance of their children's sun protection, but their children are not routinely protected. Correlates of children's sunburn and sun protection suggest subgroups of survivors to target with interventions to improve sun protection. Copyright © 2016 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Correlates of Sun Protection and Sunburn in Children of Melanoma Survivors

PubMed Central

Tripp, Mary K.; Peterson, Susan K.; Prokhorov, Alexander V.; S.Shete, Sanjay; Lee, Jeffrey E.; Gershenwald, Jeffrey E.; Gritz, Ellen R.

2017-01-01

Introduction Sunburns during childhood increase melanoma risk. Children of melanoma survivors are at higher risk, but little is known about their sunburn and sun protection. One study showed that almost half of melanoma survivors’ children experienced sunburn in the past year. This study evaluated sunburn and sun protection in melanoma survivors’ children, and relevant survivor characteristics from Social Cognitive Theory and the Health Belief Model. Methods Melanoma survivors (N=340) were recruited from a comprehensive cancer center. Survivors completed a baseline questionnaire administered by telephone to report on the behavior of their children (N=340) as part of an RCT of a sun protection intervention. Data were collected in 2008 and analyzed in 2015. Results In the prior 6 months, 28% of children experienced sunburn. “Always” or “frequent” sun protection varied by behavior: sunscreen, 69%; lip balm, 15%; wide-brimmed hats, 9%; sleeved shirts, 28%; pants, 48%; sunglasses, 10%; shade, 33%; and limiting time outdoors, 45%. Survivors’ sunburn and sun protection were positively associated with these outcomes in children. Correlates of sunburn also included older child age and higher risk perceptions. Correlates of sun protection behaviors included younger child age; stronger intentions, higher self-efficacy, and more positive outcome expectations about sun protection; and greater number of melanomas in survivors. Conclusions Melanoma survivors may have a heightened awareness of the importance of their children’s sun protection, but their children are not routinely protected. Correlates of children’s sunburn and sun protection suggest subgroups of survivors to target with interventions to improve sun protection. PMID:27067306

Sun Protection Practices and Sun Exposure among Children with a Parental History of Melanoma

PubMed Central

Glenn, Beth A.; Lin, Tiffany; Chang, L. Cindy; Okada, Ashley; Wong, Weng Kee; Glanz, Karen; Bastani, Roshan

2014-01-01

Background First-degree relatives of melanoma survivors have a substantially higher lifetime risk for melanoma than individuals with no family history. Exposure to ultraviolet radiation is the primary modifiable risk factor for the disease. Reducing UV exposure through sun protection may be particularly important for children with a parental history of melanoma. Nonetheless, limited prior research has investigated sun protection practices and sun exposure among these children. Methods The California Cancer Registry was used to identify melanoma survivors eligible to participate in a survey to assess their children's sun protection practices and sun exposure. The survey was administered by mail, telephone, or web to Latino and non-Latino white melanoma survivors with at least one child (0–17 years; N = 324). Results Sun exposure was high and the rate of sunburn was equivalent to or higher than estimates from average risk populations. Use of sun protection was suboptimal. Latino children were less likely to wear sunscreen and hats and more likely to wear sunglasses, although these differences disappeared in adjusted analyses. Increasing age of the child was associated with lower sun protection and higher risk for sunburn whereas higher objective risk for melanoma predicted improved sun protection and a higher risk for sunburns. Perception of high barriers to sun protection was the strongest modifiable correlate of sun protection. Conclusions Interventions to improve sun protection and reduce sun exposure and sunburns in high risk children are needed. Impact Intervening in high risk populations may help reduce the burden of melanoma in the U.S. PMID:25587110

Photokeratitis induced by ultraviolet radiation in travelers: A major health problem

PubMed Central

Izadi, M; Jonaidi-Jafari, N; Pourazizi, M; Alemzadeh-Ansari, MH; Hoseinpourfard, MJ

2018-01-01

Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation is one of the several environmental hazards that may cause inflammatory reactions in ocular tissues, especially the cornea. One of the important factors that affect how much ultraviolet radiation (UVR) humans are exposed to is travel. Hence, traveling is considered to include a more acute UVR effect, and ophthalmologists frequently evaluate and manage the ocular manifestations of UV irradiation, including UV-induced keratitis. The purpose of this paper is to provide an evidence-based analysis of the clinical effect of UVR in ocular tissues. An extensive review of English literature was performed to gather all available articles from the National Library of Medicine PubMed database of the National Institute of Health, the Ovid MEDLINE database, Scopus, and ScienceDirect that had studied the effect of UVR on the eye and its complications, between January 1970 and June 2014. The results show that UVR at 300 nm causes apoptosis in all three layers of the cornea and induces keratitis. Apoptosis in all layers of the cornea occurs 5 h after exposure. The effect of UVR intensity on the eye can be linked to numerous factors, including solar elevation, time of day, season, hemisphere, clouds and haze, atmospheric scattering, atmospheric ozone, latitude, altitude, longitudinal changes, climate, ground reflection, and geographic directions. The most important factor affecting UVR reaching the earth's surface is solar elevation. Currently, people do not have great concern over eye protection. The methods of protection against UVR include avoiding direct sunlight exposure, using UVR-blocking eyewear (sunglasses or contact lenses), and wearing hats. Hence, by identifying UVR intensity factors, eye protection factors, and public education, especially in travelers, methods for safe traveling can be identified. PMID:29067921

Photokeratitis induced by ultraviolet radiation in travelers: A major health problem.

PubMed

Izadi, M; Jonaidi-Jafari, N; Pourazizi, M; Alemzadeh-Ansari, M H; Hoseinpourfard, M J

2018-01-01

Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation is one of the several environmental hazards that may cause inflammatory reactions in ocular tissues, especially the cornea. One of the important factors that affect how much ultraviolet radiation (UVR) humans are exposed to is travel. Hence, traveling is considered to include a more acute UVR effect, and ophthalmologists frequently evaluate and manage the ocular manifestations of UV irradiation, including UV-induced keratitis. The purpose of this paper is to provide an evidence-based analysis of the clinical effect of UVR in ocular tissues. An extensive review of English literature was performed to gather all available articles from the National Library of Medicine PubMed database of the National Institute of Health, the Ovid MEDLINE database, Scopus, and ScienceDirect that had studied the effect of UVR on the eye and its complications, between January 1970 and June 2014. The results show that UVR at 300 nm causes apoptosis in all three layers of the cornea and induces keratitis. Apoptosis in all layers of the cornea occurs 5 h after exposure. The effect of UVR intensity on the eye can be linked to numerous factors, including solar elevation, time of day, season, hemisphere, clouds and haze, atmospheric scattering, atmospheric ozone, latitude, altitude, longitudinal changes, climate, ground reflection, and geographic directions. The most important factor affecting UVR reaching the earth's surface is solar elevation. Currently, people do not have great concern over eye protection. The methods of protection against UVR include avoiding direct sunlight exposure, using UVR-blocking eyewear (sunglasses or contact lenses), and wearing hats. Hence, by identifying UVR intensity factors, eye protection factors, and public education, especially in travelers, methods for safe traveling can be identified.

Strategies to reduce hyperthermia in ambulatory multiple sclerosis patients.

PubMed

Edlich, Richard F; Buschbacher, Ralph M; Cox, Mary Jude; Long, William B; Winters, Kathryne L; Becker, Daniel G

2004-01-01

Approximately 400,000 Americans have multiple sclerosis. Worldwide, multiple sclerosis affects 2.5 million individuals. Multiple sclerosis affects two to three times as many women as men. The adverse effects of hyperthermia in patients with multiple sclerosis have been known since 1890. While most patients with multiple sclerosis experience reversible worsening of their neurologic deficits, some patients experience irreversible neurologic deficits. In fact, heat-induced fatalities have been encountered in multiple sclerosis patients subjected to hyperthermia. Hyperthermia can be caused through sun exposure, exercise, and infection. During the last 50 years, numerous strategies have evolved to reduce hyperthermia in individuals with multiple sclerosis, such as photoprotective clothing, sunglasses, sunscreens, hydrotherapy, and prevention of urinary tract infections. Hydrotherapy has become an essential component of rehabilitation for multiple sclerosis patients in hospitals throughout the world. On the basis of this positive hospital experience, hydrotherapy has been expanded through the use of compact aquatic exercise pools at home along with personal cooling devices that promote local and systemic hypothermia in multiple sclerosis patients. The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America and NASA have played leadership roles in developing and recommending technology that will prevent hyperthermia in multiple sclerosis patients and should be consulted for new technological advances that will benefit the multiple sclerosis patient. In addition, products recommended for photoprotection by The Skin Cancer Foundation may also be helpful to the multiple sclerosis patient's defense against hyperthermia. Infections in the urinary tract, especially detrusor-external sphincter dyssynergia, are initially managed conservatively with intermittent self-catheterization and pharmacologic therapy. In those cases, refractory to conservative therapy, transurethral external sphincterotomy followed by condom catheter drainage is recommended. However, if external urethral sphincterotomy fails to reduce residual urine and detrusor pressure, urinary diversion or bladder reconstruction may be necessary.

Bright light exposure at night and light attenuation in the morning improve adaptation of night shift workers.

PubMed

Yoon, In-Young; Jeong, Do-Un; Kwon, Ki-Bum; Kang, Sang-Bum; Song, Byoung-Gun

2002-05-01

With practical applicability in mind, we wanted to observe whether nocturnal alertness, performance, and daytime sleep could be improved by light exposure of tolerable intensity and duration in a real work place. We also evaluated whether attenuating morning light was important in adaptation of real night shift workers. Twelve night shift nurses participated in this study. The study consisted of three different treatment procedures: Room Light (RL), Bright Light (BL), and Bright Light with Sunglasses (BL/S). In RL, room light exposure was given during the night shift and followed by 1 hr exposure to sunlight or 10,000 lux light the next morning (from 08:30 to 09:30). In BL, a 4-hour nocturnal light exposure of 4,000-6,000 lux (from 01:00 to 05:00) was applied and followed by the same morning light exposure as in RL. In BL/S, the same nocturnal light exposure as in BL was done with light attenuation in the morning. Each treatment procedure was continued for 4 days in a repeated measures, cross-over design. Nocturnal alertness was measured by a visual analog scale. Computerized performance tests were done. Daytime sleep was recorded with actigraphy. The most significant overall improvement of sleep was noted in BL/S. BL showed less improvement than BL/S but more than RL. Comparison of nocturnal alertness among the 3 treatments produced similar results: during BL/S, the subjects were most alert, followed by BL and then by RL. Real night shift workers can improve nocturnal alertness and daytime sleep by bright light exposure in their work place. These improvements can be maximized by attenuating morning light on the way home.

Immediate effect of blue-enhanced light on reproductive hormones in women.

PubMed

Danilenko, Konstantin V; Sergeeva, Oksana Y

2015-01-01

Light is known to stimulate reproductive function in women. We here investigated the immediate effect of light on reproductive hormones, addressing the role of blue-sensitive (~480 nm) melanopsin-based photoreception mediating the non-visual effects of light. Sixteen healthy women attended the Institute at ~07:25 (shortly after waking; sunglasses worn) twice in 2-3 days in April-May, within days 4-10 of their menstrual cycle. During one session, a broad-spectrum white-appearing light with a superimposed peak at 469 nm was presented against 5-10 lux background; during the other session, short-spectrum red light peaked at 651 nm with similar irradiance level (~7.0 W/m², corresponds to ~1200 lux) was used. Venous blood was taken at 0, 22 and 44 minutes of light exposure to measure concentrations of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinising hormone (LH), prolactin, estradiol, progesterone and cortisol, and saliva was sampled to measure melatonin as a recognised indicator of the spectral-specific action of light. Melatonin values, as expected, were lower with white vs. red light (p=0.014), with the greatest difference at 22 minutes. Of the other hormones, only FSH concentrations differed significantly: they were mildly higher at white vs. red light (again, at 22 minutes; p=0.030; statistical analysis adjusted for menstrual cycle day and posture change [pre-sampling time seated]). Moderately bright blue-enhanced white light, compared to matched-by-irradiance red light, transiently (within 22 minutes) and mildly stimulated morning secretion of follicle-stimulating hormone in women in mid-to-late follicular phase of their menstrual cycle suggesting a direct functional link between the light and reproductive system.

A Novel Marking Reader for Progressive Addition Lenses Based on Gabor Holography.

PubMed

Perucho, Beatriz; Picazo-Bueno, José Angel; Micó, Vicente

2016-05-01

Progressive addition lenses (PALs) are marked with permanent engraved marks (PEMs) at standardized locations. Permanent engraved marks are very useful through the manufacturing and mounting processes, act as locator marks to re-ink the removable marks, and contain useful information about the PAL. However, PEMs are often faint and weak, obscured by scratches, partially occluded, and difficult to recognize on tinted lenses or with antireflection or scratch-resistant coatings. The aim of this article is to present a new generation of portable marking reader based on an extremely simplified concept for visualization and identification of PEMs in PALs. Permanent engraved marks on different PALs are visualized using classical Gabor holography as underlying principle. Gabor holography allows phase sample visualization with adjustable magnification and can be implemented in either classical or digital versions. Here, visual Gabor holography is used to provide a magnified defocused image of the PEMs onto a translucent visualization screen where the PEM is clearly identified. Different types of PALs (conventional, personalized, old and scratched, sunglasses, etc.) have been tested to visualize PEMs with the proposed marking reader. The PEMs are visible in every case, and variable magnification factor can be achieved simply moving up and down the PAL in the instrument. In addition, a second illumination wavelength is also tested, showing the applicability of this novel marking reader for different illuminations. A new concept of marking reader ophthalmic instrument has been presented and validated in the laboratory. The configuration involves only a commercial-grade laser diode and a visualization screen for PEM identification. The instrument is portable, economic, and easy to use, and it can be used for identifying patient's current PAL model and for marking removable PALs again or finding test points regardless of the age of the PAL, its scratches, tints, or coatings.

I Reach Faster When I See You Look: Gaze Effects in Human-Human and Human-Robot Face-to-Face Cooperation.

PubMed

Boucher, Jean-David; Pattacini, Ugo; Lelong, Amelie; Bailly, Gerrard; Elisei, Frederic; Fagel, Sascha; Dominey, Peter Ford; Ventre-Dominey, Jocelyne

2012-01-01

Human-human interaction in natural environments relies on a variety of perceptual cues. Humanoid robots are becoming increasingly refined in their sensorimotor capabilities, and thus should now be able to manipulate and exploit these social cues in cooperation with their human partners. Previous studies have demonstrated that people follow human and robot gaze, and that it can help them to cope with spatially ambiguous language. Our goal is to extend these findings into the domain of action, to determine how human and robot gaze can influence the speed and accuracy of human action. We report on results from a human-human cooperation experiment demonstrating that an agent's vision of her/his partner's gaze can significantly improve that agent's performance in a cooperative task. We then implement a heuristic capability to generate such gaze cues by a humanoid robot that engages in the same cooperative interaction. The subsequent human-robot experiments demonstrate that a human agent can indeed exploit the predictive gaze of their robot partner in a cooperative task. This allows us to render the humanoid robot more human-like in its ability to communicate with humans. The long term objectives of the work are thus to identify social cooperation cues, and to validate their pertinence through implementation in a cooperative robot. The current research provides the robot with the capability to produce appropriate speech and gaze cues in the context of human-robot cooperation tasks. Gaze is manipulated in three conditions: Full gaze (coordinated eye and head), eyes hidden with sunglasses, and head fixed. We demonstrate the pertinence of these cues in terms of statistical measures of action times for humans in the context of a cooperative task, as gaze significantly facilitates cooperation as measured by human response times.

Women with hereditary breast cancer predispositions should avoid using their smartphones, tablets, and laptops at night.

PubMed

Mortazavi, Seyed Ali Reza; Mortazavi, Seyed Mohammad Javad

2018-02-01

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women, both in the developed and developing countries. Women with mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancers. Recent studies show that short-wavelength visible light disturb the secretion of melatonin and causes circadian rhythm disruption. We have previously studied the health effects of exposure to different levels of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) such as mobile phones, mobile base stations, mobile phone jammers, laptop computers, and radars. Moreover, over the past several years, we investigated the health effects of exposure to the short wavelength visible light in the blue region emitted from digital screens. The reduction of melatonin secretion after exposure to blue light emitted from smartphone's screen has been reported to be associated with the negative impact of smartphone use at night on sleep. We have shown that both the blue light and RF-EMFs generated by mobile phones are linked to the disruption of the circadian rhythm in people who use their phones at night. Therefore, if women with hereditary breast cancer predispositions use their smartphones, tablets and laptops at night, disrupted circadian rhythms (suppression of melatonin caused by exposure to blue light emitted from the digital screens), amplifies the risk of breast cancer. It can be concluded that women who carry mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2, or women with family history of breast cancer should avoid using their smartphones, tablets and laptops at night. Using sunglasses with amber lenses, or smartphone applications which decrease the users' exposure to blue light before sleep, at least to some extent, can decrease the risk of circadian rhythm disruption and breast cancer.

Sun protection among Spanish beachgoers: knowledge, attitude and behaviour.

PubMed

Cercato, M C; Ramazzotti, V; Sperduti, I; Asensio-Pascual, A; Ribes, I; Guillén, C; Nagore, E

2015-03-01

This study aims to investigate the level of awareness on the risks related to sun exposure, attitude towards sun protection and sun protection behaviour in Spanish beachgoers. During the summer of 2009, trained assistants conducted a structured interview with 630 sunbathers at the beaches of Valencia, Spain, via administrating a questionnaire including the following: (a) general data (age, gender, education, profession), (b) "knowledge" and "attitude" items and (c) self-assessed sun sensitivity, sun exposure and sun protection characteristics. The health belief model was used to evaluate factors that may influence on engaging healthy behaviour. The median age was 30 (2-82) years; the M/F ratio was 0.60. Despite the widespread regular ("often" or "always", 80%) use of high (>15) sun-protective factor sunscreens, current recommendations on sun protection were not regularly followed, and a history of sunburns is very common (70%). At multivariate analysis, female gender, age, fair hair, freckles, all-day use of sunscreens and wearing sunglasses were independent factors associated with having sunburn history. A high knowledge and a fairly good attitude emerged (median scores, 6/7 and 22/30, respectively). Age class (p = 0.032), educational level (p < 0.0001), sunscreen use (p = 0.048) and adequate timing of the first application of sunscreens (p = 0.015) were predictors of awareness, while factors associated with a more favourable attitude were educational level (p < 0.0001) and regular use of hats (p = 0.001). Wrong beliefs mainly concern sunscreens (false safety); the attractiveness of a tanned look is the main unfavourable attitude. Physical and motivational barriers are common (80%). The findings by highlighting constitutional and psychosocial factors involved in unhealthy behaviour provide useful information to promote sun-safe interventions in this population.

Women with hereditary breast cancer predispositions should avoid using their smartphones, tablets, and laptops at night

PubMed Central

Mortazavi, Seyed Ali Reza; Mortazavi, Seyed Mohammad Javad

2018-01-01

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women, both in the developed and developing countries. Women with mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancers. Recent studies show that short-wavelength visible light disturb the secretion of melatonin and causes circadian rhythm disruption. We have previously studied the health effects of exposure to different levels of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) such as mobile phones, mobile base stations, mobile phone jammers, laptop computers, and radars. Moreover, over the past several years, we investigated the health effects of exposure to the short wavelength visible light in the blue region emitted from digital screens. The reduction of melatonin secretion after exposure to blue light emitted from smartphone’s screen has been reported to be associated with the negative impact of smartphone use at night on sleep. We have shown that both the blue light and RF-EMFs generated by mobile phones are linked to the disruption of the circadian rhythm in people who use their phones at night. Therefore, if women with hereditary breast cancer predispositions use their smartphones, tablets and laptops at night, disrupted circadian rhythms (suppression of melatonin caused by exposure to blue light emitted from the digital screens), amplifies the risk of breast cancer. It can be concluded that women who carry mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2, or women with family history of breast cancer should avoid using their smartphones, tablets and laptops at night. Using sunglasses with amber lenses, or smartphone applications which decrease the users’ exposure to blue light before sleep, at least to some extent, can decrease the risk of circadian rhythm disruption and breast cancer. PMID:29456806

Refractive errors, visual impairment, and the use of low-vision devices in albinism in Malawi.

PubMed

Schulze Schwering, M; Kumar, N; Bohrmann, D; Msukwa, G; Kalua, K; Kayange, P; Spitzer, M S

2015-04-01

This study focuses on the refractive implications of albinism in Malawi, which is mostly associated with the burden of visual impairment. The main goal was to describe the refractive errors and to analyze whether patients with albinism in Malawi, Sub-Saharan Africa, benefit from refraction. Age, sex, refractive data, uncorrected and best-corrected visual acuity (UCVA, BCVA), colour vision, contrast sensitivity, and the prescription of sunglasses and low vision devices were collected for a group of 120 albino individuals with oculocutaneous albinism (OCA). Refractive errors were evaluated objectively and subjectively by retinoscopy, and followed by cycloplegic refraction to reconfirm the results. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was also assessed binocularly. One hundred and twenty albino subjects were examined, ranging in age from 4 to 25 years (median 12 years), 71 (59 %) boys and 49 (41 %) girls. All exhibited horizontal pendular nystagmus. Mean visual acuity improved from 0.98 (0.33) logMAR to 0.77 (0.15) logMAR after refraction (p < 0.001). The best improvement of VA was achieved in patients with mild to moderate myopia. Patients with albinism who were hyperopic more than +1.5 D hardly improved from refraction. With the rule (WTR) astigmatism was more present (37.5 %) than against the rule (ATR) astigmatism (3.8 %). Patients with astigmatism less than 1.5 D improved in 15/32 of cases (47 %) by 2 lines or more. Patients with astigmatism equal to or more than 1.5 D in any axis improved in 26/54 of cases (48 %) by 2 lines or more. Refraction improves visual acuity of children with oculocutaneous albinism in a Sub-Saharan African population in Malawi. The mean improvement was 2 logMAR units.

Links between an Owner’s Adult Attachment Style and the Support-Seeking Behavior of Their Dog

PubMed Central

Rehn, Therese; Beetz, Andrea; Keeling, Linda J.

2017-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate if an owner’s adult attachment style (AAS) influences how their dog interacts and obtains support from them during challenging events. A person’s AAS describes how they perceive their relationship to other people, but it may also reflect their caregiving behavior, and so their behavior toward the dog. We measured the AAS of 51 female Golden retriever owners, using the Adult Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ), and observed the reactions of the dog-owner dyads in response to different challenging situations [visual surprise, auditory stressor and social stressors like a person approaching dressed as ghost or in coat, hat and sunglasses]. In addition, the dog was left alone in a novel environment for 3 min. Interactions between the dog and owner were observed both before and after separation. Spearman rank correlation tests were made (between owner AAS and dog behavior) and where correlations were found, Mann–Whitney U-tests were made on the dogs’ behavioral response between high and low scoring groups of owners of the different subscales of the ASQ. The more secure the owner (ASQ subscale ‘Confidence’), the longer the dog was oriented to the two sudden stressors (the visual and auditory stressor). The more anxious the owner (ASQ subscale ‘Attachment anxiety’), the longer the dog oriented toward the owner during the approach of the strange-looking person and the dog showed less lip licking during separation from the owner. The more avoidant the owner (ASQ subscale ‘Avoidant attachment’), the longer the dog oriented toward the owner during the visual stressor, the less it was located behind the owner during the auditory stressor and the less it was oriented toward the auditory stressor. These links between owner attachment style and dog behavior imply that dogs may develop different strategies to handle challenging situations, based on the type of support they get from their owner. PMID:29250009

Adoption of Sun Safe Work Place Practices by Local Governments

PubMed Central

Wallis, Allan; Andersen, Peter A.; Buller, David B.; Walkosz, Barbara; Lui, Lucia; Buller, Mary; Scott, Michael D.; Jenkins, Rob

2014-01-01

Context Outdoor workers are especially susceptible to skin cancer, the most common, but also one of the most preventable, forms of cancer. Colorado, the location of the study, has the second highest rate of skin cancer deaths in the nation. Objective Local government managers in Colorado—in municipalities, counties and special districts—were surveyed in order to ascertain the extent to which they engage in formal (written) and informal practices to protect their outdoor workers against excessive exposure to sun. Design The survey consisted of 51 question assessing awareness of formal or informal practices for sun protection of outdoor workers. An index of practices--the study's dependent variable--was created that was comprised or practices such as providing employees free or reduced-cost sunscreen, wide-brimmed hats, sunglasses, long-sleeved work shirts, long work pants, and temporary or permanent outdoor shade shelters. Proscriptive policies, such as restricting the use of broad brimmed hats, were subtracted from the index. Surveys were completed by 825 administrators representing 98 jurisdictions. Responses from administrators in the same jurisdiction were averaged. Results Over 40 percent of responding jurisdictions indicated that they engaged in informal sun safety practices. Tests conducted to determine what variables might account for the adoption of these sun protection practices found that the degree to which a community could be regarded as cosmopolite and as having an individualistic political culture were significant predictors. Type of government was also significant. Although, higher community income was a significant predictor, neither local government budget nor size was significant. Conclusions The adoption of sun safe practices bears low costs with potentially high returns. Findings from this study suggest that awareness campaigns might most effectively target cosmopolite communities, but that the greatest impact might be achieved by targeting localite communities. Government size and budget do not appear to be constraints in the adoption of sun safe practices. PMID:24231670

Environmental variables associated with vacationers' sun protection at warm weather resorts in North America

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Andersen, Peter A., E-mail: westone47@gmail.com; Buller, David B.; Walkosz, Barbara J.

Background: Vacationing at sunny, warm weather locations is a risk factor for excessive solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure and skin cancer. Objectives: This study examined the association of environmental variables related to UV levels with vacationers' sun protection. Methods: Vacationers at 41 summer resorts in 17 states and 1 Canadian Province were interviewed (n=3531) and observed (N=4347) during 2012 and 2013. Clothing coverage, sunglasses, and shade use were observed. Use of sunscreen and sunburns were self-reported. Environmental information was recorded by research staff or acquired from ground stations and the weather service. Results: Temperature was positively associated with sun protectionmore » behaviors; however clothing coverage was negatively associated with temperature. Cloud cover was negatively associated with sun protection, with the exception of clothing coverage which was positively associated with it. Elevation showed a mixed pattern of associations with vacationer's sun protection. Latitude of a resort was negatively associated with most sun protection behaviors, such that sun protection increased at more southerly resorts. Similarly, the farther south a vacationer traveled to the resort, the less sun protection they employed. The UV index showed a weak, positive relationship with some sun protection behaviors even when controlling for temperature. Conclusions: Vacationers appeared aware that UV is higher at southern latitudes and may learn UV is intense when living in southern regions. However, many used temperature, an unreliable cue, to judge UV intensity and seemed to adjust clothing for warmth not UV protection. Efforts are needed to help individuals make more accurate sun safety decisions. - Highlights: • Vacationers poorly monitor and protect against environmental ultraviolet radiation (UVR). • On cloudy days vacationers fail to protect against UVR. • Temperature is erroneously used by vacationers as a marker for UVR. • Clothing is used primarily by vacationers for warmth, not UVR protection. • The farther south a vacationer travels, the more likely they are to sunburn.« less

Adoption of sun safe workplace practices by local governments.

PubMed

Wallis, Allan; Andersen, Peter A; Buller, David B; Walkosz, Barbara; Lui, Lucia; Buller, Mary; Scott, Michael D; Jenkins, Rob

2014-01-01

Outdoor workers are especially susceptible to skin cancer--the most common, but also one of the most preventable, forms of cancer. Colorado, the location of the study, has the second highest rate of skin cancer deaths in the nation. Local government managers in Colorado-in municipalities, counties, and special districts-were surveyed to ascertain the extent to which they engage in formal (written) and informal practices to protect their outdoor workers against excessive exposure to sun. The survey consisted of 51 questions assessing awareness of formal or informal practices for sun protection of outdoor workers. An index of practices--the study's dependent variable--was created that was composed or practices such as providing employees free or reduced-cost sunscreen, wide-brimmed hats, sunglasses, long-sleeved work shirts, long work pants, and temporary or permanent outdoor shade shelters. Proscriptive policies, such as restricting the use of broad brimmed hats, were subtracted from the index. Surveys were completed by 825 administrators representing 98 jurisdictions. Responses from administrators in the same jurisdiction were averaged. More than 40% of responding jurisdictions indicated that they engaged in informal sun safety practices. Tests conducted to determine what variables might account for the adoption of these sun protection practices found that the degree to which a community could be regarded as cosmopolite and as having an individualistic political culture were significant predictors. Type of government was also significant. Although, higher community income was a significant predictor, neither local government budget nor size was significant. The adoption of sun safe practices bears low costs with potentially high returns. Findings from this study suggest that awareness campaigns might most effectively target cosmopolite communities, but that the greatest impact might be achieved by targeting localite communities. Government size and budget do not appear to be constraints in the adoption of sun safe practices.

I Reach Faster When I See You Look: Gaze Effects in Human–Human and Human–Robot Face-to-Face Cooperation

PubMed Central

Boucher, Jean-David; Pattacini, Ugo; Lelong, Amelie; Bailly, Gerard; Elisei, Frederic; Fagel, Sascha; Dominey, Peter Ford; Ventre-Dominey, Jocelyne

2012-01-01

Human–human interaction in natural environments relies on a variety of perceptual cues. Humanoid robots are becoming increasingly refined in their sensorimotor capabilities, and thus should now be able to manipulate and exploit these social cues in cooperation with their human partners. Previous studies have demonstrated that people follow human and robot gaze, and that it can help them to cope with spatially ambiguous language. Our goal is to extend these findings into the domain of action, to determine how human and robot gaze can influence the speed and accuracy of human action. We report on results from a human–human cooperation experiment demonstrating that an agent’s vision of her/his partner’s gaze can significantly improve that agent’s performance in a cooperative task. We then implement a heuristic capability to generate such gaze cues by a humanoid robot that engages in the same cooperative interaction. The subsequent human–robot experiments demonstrate that a human agent can indeed exploit the predictive gaze of their robot partner in a cooperative task. This allows us to render the humanoid robot more human-like in its ability to communicate with humans. The long term objectives of the work are thus to identify social cooperation cues, and to validate their pertinence through implementation in a cooperative robot. The current research provides the robot with the capability to produce appropriate speech and gaze cues in the context of human–robot cooperation tasks. Gaze is manipulated in three conditions: Full gaze (coordinated eye and head), eyes hidden with sunglasses, and head fixed. We demonstrate the pertinence of these cues in terms of statistical measures of action times for humans in the context of a cooperative task, as gaze significantly facilitates cooperation as measured by human response times. PMID:22563315

Upregulated epidermal growth factor receptor expression following near-infrared irradiation simulating solar radiation in a three-dimensional reconstructed human corneal epithelial tissue culture model.

PubMed

Tanaka, Yohei; Nakayama, Jun

2016-01-01

Humans are increasingly exposed to near-infrared (NIR) radiation from both natural (eg, solar) and artificial (eg, electrical appliances) sources. Although the biological effects of sun and ultraviolet (UV) exposure have been extensively investigated, the biological effect of NIR radiation is still unclear. We previously reported that NIR as well as UV induces photoaging and standard UV-blocking materials, such as sunglasses, do not sufficiently block NIR. The objective of this study was to investigate changes in gene expression in three-dimensional reconstructed corneal epithelial tissue culture exposed to broad-spectrum NIR irradiation to simulate solar NIR radiation that reaches human tissues. DNA microarray and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis were used to assess gene expression levels in a three-dimensional reconstructed corneal epithelial model composed of normal human corneal epithelial cells exposed to water-filtered broad-spectrum NIR irradiation with a contact cooling (20°C). The water-filter allowed 1,000-1,800 nm wavelengths and excluded 1,400-1,500 nm wavelengths. A DNA microarray with >62,000 different probes showed 25 and 150 genes that were up- or downregulated by at least fourfold and twofold, respectively, after NIR irradiation. In particular, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) was upregulated by 19.4-fold relative to control cells. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed that two variants of EGFR in human corneal epithelial tissue were also significantly upregulated after five rounds of 10 J/cm(2) irradiation (P<0.05). We found that NIR irradiation induced the upregulated expression of EGFR in human corneal cells. Since over half of the solar energy reaching the Earth is in the NIR region, which cannot be adequately blocked by eyewear and thus can induce eye damage with intensive or long-term exposure, protection from both UV and NIR radiation may prevent changes in gene expression and in turn eye damage.

Aware, motivated and striving for a 'safe tan': an exploratory mixed-method study of sun-protection during holidays.

PubMed

Rodrigues, Angela M; Sniehotta, Falko F; Birch-Machin, Mark A; Araujo-Soares, Vera

2017-01-01

Background: This article presents an exploratory study, aiming to explore the correspondence between knowledge, motivation and sun-protection practices during holidays. Methods: Seventeen participants aged 21-62 years old, recruited from community settings took part in individual face-to-face semi-structured interviews, completed sun sensitivity questions and an objective assessment of sunscreen use. Holidaymakers' knowledge about sun-safe messages, intentions and perceptions of barriers and facilitators for sun-protection were assessed. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis and integrated with quantitative data, using a pragmatic theory-informed approach to synthesise the findings. Results: Participants were well informed about sun-safe messages, highly motivated to protect themselves from solar UV radiation (UVR) and they perceived themselves as well protected. However, they did not seem to use effective protective practices. Sunscreen was the preferred method of sun-protection, but most participants used considerably less than the recommended amount and significantly overestimated the amount of time they could be safely exposed. Seeking shade was the least used method of sun-protection and covering-up strategies were mostly implemented as a partial protection (i.e. hats or sunglasses). The desire to reach an optimal balance between getting a tan and using sun-protection to avoid sunburns was preeminent. Several additional barriers and facilitators for sun-protection were identified. Conclusions: Holidaymakers might have a false sense of security when it comes to sun-exposure. They are aware of the need to protect from solar UVR, but the motive for a safe tan, the overreliance on sunscreen, the overestimation of the safe sun-exposure time for their skin type and the insufficient application of sunscreen leaves holidaymakers motivated to protect their skin at significant risk of overexposure, sunburn and skin cancer. Public health messages need to address how to implement effective sun-safe strategies.

Aware, motivated and striving for a ‘safe tan’: an exploratory mixed-method study of sun-protection during holidays

PubMed Central

Rodrigues, Angela M.; Sniehotta, Falko F.; Birch-Machin, Mark A.; Araujo-Soares, Vera

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT Background: This article presents an exploratory study, aiming to explore the correspondence between knowledge, motivation and sun-protection practices during holidays. Methods: Seventeen participants aged 21–62 years old, recruited from community settings took part in individual face-to-face semi-structured interviews, completed sun sensitivity questions and an objective assessment of sunscreen use. Holidaymakers’ knowledge about sun-safe messages, intentions and perceptions of barriers and facilitators for sun-protection were assessed. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis and integrated with quantitative data, using a pragmatic theory-informed approach to synthesise the findings. Results: Participants were well informed about sun-safe messages, highly motivated to protect themselves from solar UV radiation (UVR) and they perceived themselves as well protected. However, they did not seem to use effective protective practices. Sunscreen was the preferred method of sun-protection, but most participants used considerably less than the recommended amount and significantly overestimated the amount of time they could be safely exposed. Seeking shade was the least used method of sun-protection and covering-up strategies were mostly implemented as a partial protection (i.e. hats or sunglasses). The desire to reach an optimal balance between getting a tan and using sun-protection to avoid sunburns was preeminent. Several additional barriers and facilitators for sun-protection were identified. Conclusions: Holidaymakers might have a false sense of security when it comes to sun-exposure. They are aware of the need to protect from solar UVR, but the motive for a safe tan, the overreliance on sunscreen, the overestimation of the safe sun-exposure time for their skin type and the insufficient application of sunscreen leaves holidaymakers motivated to protect their skin at significant risk of overexposure, sunburn and skin cancer. Public health messages need to address how to implement effective sun-safe strategies. PMID:28670503

Simulating the effect of non-linear mode coupling in cosmological parameter estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiessling, A.; Taylor, A. N.; Heavens, A. F.

2011-09-01

Fisher Information Matrix methods are commonly used in cosmology to estimate the accuracy that cosmological parameters can be measured with a given experiment and to optimize the design of experiments. However, the standard approach usually assumes both data and parameter estimates are Gaussian-distributed. Further, for survey forecasts and optimization it is usually assumed that the power-spectrum covariance matrix is diagonal in Fourier space. However, in the low-redshift Universe, non-linear mode coupling will tend to correlate small-scale power, moving information from lower to higher order moments of the field. This movement of information will change the predictions of cosmological parameter accuracy. In this paper we quantify this loss of information by comparing naïve Gaussian Fisher matrix forecasts with a maximum likelihood parameter estimation analysis of a suite of mock weak lensing catalogues derived from N-body simulations, based on the SUNGLASS pipeline, for a 2D and tomographic shear analysis of a Euclid-like survey. In both cases, we find that the 68 per cent confidence area of the Ωm-σ8 plane increases by a factor of 5. However, the marginal errors increase by just 20-40 per cent. We propose a new method to model the effects of non-linear shear-power mode coupling in the Fisher matrix by approximating the shear-power distribution as a multivariate Gaussian with a covariance matrix derived from the mock weak lensing survey. We find that this approximation can reproduce the 68 per cent confidence regions of the full maximum likelihood analysis in the Ωm-σ8 plane to high accuracy for both 2D and tomographic weak lensing surveys. Finally, we perform a multiparameter analysis of Ωm, σ8, h, ns, w0 and wa to compare the Gaussian and non-linear mode-coupled Fisher matrix contours. The 6D volume of the 1σ error contours for the non-linear Fisher analysis is a factor of 3 larger than for the Gaussian case, and the shape of the 68 per cent confidence volume is modified. We propose that future Fisher matrix estimates of cosmological parameter accuracies should include mode-coupling effects.

Solar exposure and residential geographic history in relation to exfoliation syndrome in the United States and Israel.

PubMed

Pasquale, Louis R; Jiwani, Aliya Z; Zehavi-Dorin, Tzukit; Majd, Arow; Rhee, Douglas J; Chen, Teresa; Turalba, Angela; Shen, Lucy; Brauner, Stacey; Grosskreutz, Cynthia; Gardiner, Matthew; Chen, Sherleen; Borboli-Gerogiannis, Sheila; Greenstein, Scott H; Chang, Kenneth; Ritch, Robert; Loomis, Stephanie; Kang, Jae H; Wiggs, Janey L; Levkovitch-Verbin, Hani

2014-12-01

Residential (geographic) history and extent of solar exposure may be important risk factors for exfoliation syndrome (XFS) but, to our knowledge, detailed lifetime solar exposure has not been previously evaluated in XFS. To assess the relation between residential history, solar exposure, and XFS. This clinic-based case-control study was conducted in the United States and Israel. It involved XFS cases and control individuals (all ≥ 60-year-old white individuals) enrolled from 2010 to 2012 (United States: 118 cases and 106 control participants; Israel: 67 cases and 72 control participants). Weighted lifetime average latitude of residence and average number of hours per week spent outdoors as determined by validated questionnaires. In multivariable analyses, each degree of weighted lifetime average residential latitude away from the equator was associated with 11% increased odds of XFS (pooled odds ratio [OR], 1.11; 95% CI, 1.05-1.17; P < .001). Furthermore, every hour per week spent outdoors during the summer, averaged over a lifetime, was associated with 4% increased odds of XFS (pooled OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.00-1.07; P = .03). For every 1% of average lifetime summer time between 10 am and 4 pm that sunglasses were worn, the odds of XFS decreased by 2% (OR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.97-0.99; P < .001) in the United States but not in Israel (OR, 1.00; 95% CI, 0.99-1.01; P = .92; P for heterogeneity = .005). In the United States, after controlling for important environmental covariates, history of work over water or snow was associated with increased odds of XFS (OR, 3.86; 95% CI, 1.36-10.9); in Israel, there were too few people with such history for analysis. We did not identify an association between brimmed hat wear and XFS (P > .57). Lifetime outdoor activities may contribute to XFS. The association with work over snow or water and the lack of association with brimmed hat wear suggests that ocular exposure to light from reflective surfaces may be an important type of exposure in XFS etiology.

Conjunctival UV autofluorescence--prevalence and risk factors.

PubMed

Wolffsohn, James S; Drew, Tom; Sulley, Anna

2014-12-01

Autofluorescence of ultraviolet (UV) light has been shown to occur in localised areas of the bulbar conjunctiva, which map to active cellular changes due to UV and environmental exposure. This study examined the presence of conjunctival UV autofluorescence in eye care practitioners (ECPs) across Europe and the Middle East and its associated risk factors. Images were captured of 307 ECPs right eyes in the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Kuwait, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom using a Nikon D100 camera and dual flash units through UV filters. UV autofluorescence was outlined using ImageJ software and the nasal and temporal area quantified. Subjects were required to complete a questionnaire on their demographics and lifestyle including general exposure to UV and refractive correction. Average age of the subjects was 38.5±12.2 years (range 19-68) and 39.7% were male. Sixty-two percent of eyes had some conjunctival damage as indicated by UV autofluorescence. The average area of damage was higher (p=0.005) nasally (2.95±4.52mm(2)) than temporally (2.19±4.17mm(2)). The area of UV damage was not related to age (r=0.03, p=0.674), gender (p=0.194), self-reported sun exposure lifestyle (p>0.05), geographical location (p=0174), sunglasses use (p>0.05) or UV-blocking contact lens use (p>0.05), although it was higher in those wearing contact lenses with minimal UV-blocking and no spectacles (p=0.015). The area of UV damage was also less nasally in those who wore contact lenses and spectacles compared to those with no refractive correction use (p=0.011 nasal; p=0.958 temporal). UV conjunctival damage is common even in Europe, Kuwait and UAE, and among ECPs. The area of damage appears to be linked with the use of refractive correction, with greater damage nasally than temporally which may be explained by the peripheral light focusing effect. Copyright © 2014 British Contact Lens Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Upregulated epidermal growth factor receptor expression following near-infrared irradiation simulating solar radiation in a three-dimensional reconstructed human corneal epithelial tissue culture model

PubMed Central

Tanaka, Yohei; Nakayama, Jun

2016-01-01

Background and objective Humans are increasingly exposed to near-infrared (NIR) radiation from both natural (eg, solar) and artificial (eg, electrical appliances) sources. Although the biological effects of sun and ultraviolet (UV) exposure have been extensively investigated, the biological effect of NIR radiation is still unclear. We previously reported that NIR as well as UV induces photoaging and standard UV-blocking materials, such as sunglasses, do not sufficiently block NIR. The objective of this study was to investigate changes in gene expression in three-dimensional reconstructed corneal epithelial tissue culture exposed to broad-spectrum NIR irradiation to simulate solar NIR radiation that reaches human tissues. Materials and methods DNA microarray and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis were used to assess gene expression levels in a three-dimensional reconstructed corneal epithelial model composed of normal human corneal epithelial cells exposed to water-filtered broad-spectrum NIR irradiation with a contact cooling (20°C). The water-filter allowed 1,000–1,800 nm wavelengths and excluded 1,400–1,500 nm wavelengths. Results A DNA microarray with >62,000 different probes showed 25 and 150 genes that were up- or downregulated by at least fourfold and twofold, respectively, after NIR irradiation. In particular, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) was upregulated by 19.4-fold relative to control cells. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed that two variants of EGFR in human corneal epithelial tissue were also significantly upregulated after five rounds of 10 J/cm2 irradiation (P<0.05). Conclusion We found that NIR irradiation induced the upregulated expression of EGFR in human corneal cells. Since over half of the solar energy reaching the Earth is in the NIR region, which cannot be adequately blocked by eyewear and thus can induce eye damage with intensive or long-term exposure, protection from both UV and NIR radiation may prevent changes in gene expression and in turn eye damage. PMID:27536083

Treatment of shift work disorder and jet lag.

PubMed

Zee, Phyllis C; Goldstein, Cathy A

2010-09-01

With the growth of the 24-hour global marketplace, a substantial proportion of workers are engaged in nontraditional work schedules and frequent jet travel across multiple time zones. Thus, shift work disorder and jet lag are prevalent in our 24/7 society and have been associated with significant health and safety repercussions. In both disorders, treatment strategies are based on promoting good sleep hygiene, improving circadian alignment, and targeting specific symptoms.Treatment of shift work must be tailored to the type of shift. For a night worker, circadian alignment can be achieved with bright light exposure during the shift and avoidance of bright light (with dark or amber sunglasses) toward the latter portion of the work period and during the morning commute home. If insomnia and/or excessive sleepiness are prominent complaints despite behavioral approaches and adequate opportunity for sleep, melatonin may be administered prior to the day sleep period to improve sleep, and alertness during work can be augmented by caffeine and wake-promoting agents.For jet lag, circadian adaptation is suggested only for travel greater than 48 h, with travel east more challenging than travel west. Although advancing sleep and wake times and circadian timing for eastward travel with evening melatonin and morning bright light several days prior to departure can help avoid jet lag at the new destination, this approach may be impractical for many people, Therefore, strategies for treatment at the destination, such as avoidance of early morning light and exposure to late-morning and afternoon light alone or in conjunction with bedtime melatonin, can accelerate re-entrainment following eastward travel. For westward travel, a circadian delay can be achieved after arrival with afternoon and early-evening light with bedtime melatonin.Good sleep hygiene practices, together with the application of circadian principles, can improve sleep quality, alertness, performance, and safety in shift workers and jet travelers. However, definitive multicenter randomized controlled clinical trials are still needed, using traditional efficacy outcomes such as sleep and performance as well as novel biomarkers of health.

[Sleep disorders among physicians on shift work].

PubMed

Schlafer, O; Wenzel, V; Högl, B

2014-11-01

Sleep disorders in physicians who perform shift work can result in increased risks of health problems that negatively impact performance and patient safety. Even those who cope well with shift work are likely to suffer from sleep disorders. The aim of this manuscript is to discuss possible causes, contributing factors and consequences of sleep disorders in physicians and to identify measures that can improve adaptation to shift work and treatment strategies for shift work-associated sleep disorders. The risk factors that influence the development of sleep disorders in physicians are numerous and include genetic factors (15 % of the population), age (> 50 years), undiagnosed sleep apnea,, alcohol abuse as well as multiple stress factors inherent in clinical duties (including shift work), research, teaching and family obligations. Several studies have reported an increased risk for medical errors in sleep-deprived physicians. Shift workers have an increased risk for psychiatric and cardiovascular diseases and shift work may also be a contributing factor to cancer. A relationship has been reported not only with sleep deprivation and changes in food intake but also with diabetes mellitus, obesity, hypertension and coronary heart disease. Nicotine and alcohol consumption are more frequent among shift workers. Increased sickness and accident rates among physicians when commuting (especially after night shifts) have a socioeconomic impact. In order to reduce fatigue and to improve performance, short naps during shiftwork or naps plus caffeine, have been proposed as coping strategies; however, napping during adverse circadian phases is less effective, if not impossible when unable to fall asleep. Bright and blue light supports alertness during a night shift. After shiftwork, direct sunlight exposure to the retina can be avoided by using dark sunglasses or glasses with orange lenses for commuting home. The home environment for daytime sleeping after a night shift should be very dark to allow endogenous melatonin secretion, which is a night signal and supports continuous sleep. Sleep disorders can be treated with timed light exposure, as well as behavioral and environmental strategies to compensate for sleep deprivation. Fatigue due to sleep deprivation can only be systematically treated with sleep.

The Effect of Educational Intervention Based on Health Belief Model and Social Support on Promoting Skin Cancer Preventive Behaviors in a Sample of Iranian Farmers.

PubMed

Jeihooni, Ali Khani; Rakhshani, Tayebeh

2018-01-08

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in Iran. Farmers are exposed to the sun's ultraviolet radiation due to their job and are susceptible to skin cancer. The aim of this study is to survey the effect of educational intervention based on health belief model and social support on promoting skin cancer preventive behaviors in farmers of Fasa City, Fars province, Iran. In this quasi-experimental study, 200 farmers (100 in experimental group and 100 in control group) in Fasa City, Fars, Iran, were selected in 2017. The educational intervention for the experimental group consisted of eight training sessions (introduction to skin cancer, risk factors, complications, benefits and barriers to proper use of sunscreen, UV sunglasses and physical protection, self-efficacy in applying preventive behaviors, role of social support). A questionnaire consisting of demographic information, knowledge, HBM constructs (perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, barriers, self-efficacy and cues to action), and social support was used to measure skin cancer preventive behaviors before, 3 months after the intervention, and 6 months later. Data were analyzed using SPSS-22 via chi-squared, independent samples t test, Mann-Whitney, and repeated measures ANOVA at a significance level of 0.5. The mean age of the farmers was 42.21 ± 10.52 years in the experimental group and 44.28 ± 10.16 years in the control group. Three months after the intervention and 6 months after the intervention, the experimental group showed a significant increase in the knowledge, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, self-efficacy, cues to action, social support, and skin cancer preventive behaviors compared to the control group. This study showed the effectiveness of the intervention based on the HBM constructs and social support in adoption of skin cancer preventive behaviors in 3 and 6 months post intervention in farmers. Hence, these models can act as a framework for designing and implementing educational interventions for the prevention of skin cancer.

UV Radiation: a new first year physics/life sciences laboratory experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petelina, S. V.; Siddaway, J. M.

2010-12-01

Unfortunately, Australia leads the world in the number of skin cancer cases per capita. Three major factors that contribute to this are: 1) the level of damaging ultraviolet (UV) radiation in Australia is higher than in many other countries. This is caused, among other factors, by the stratospheric ozone depletion and Antarctic ozone hole; 2) many people in Australia are of Irish-Scottish origin and their skin can not repair the damage caused by the UV radiation as effectively as the skin of people of other origins; 3) Australia is one of the world’s leaders in the outdoor activities where people tend to spend more time outside. As our experience has shown, most Australian University students, high school students, and even high school teachers were largely unaware of the UV damage details and effective safety measures. Therefore, a need for new ways to educate people became apparent. The general aim of this new 1st year laboratory experiment, developed and first offered at La Trobe University (Melbourne, Australia) in 2009, is to investigate how UV-B radiation levels change under various solar illumination conditions and how effective different types of protection are. After pre-lab readings on physical concepts and biological effects of UV radiation, and after solving all pre-lab problems, the students go outside and measure the actual change in UV-B and UV-A radiation levels under various conditions. Some of these conditions are: direct sun, shade from a building, shade under the roof, reflection from various surfaces, direct sun through cheap and expensive sunglasses and eyeglasses, direct sun through various types of cloth and hair. The equipment used is the UV-Probe manufactured by sglux SolGel Technologies GmbH. The students’ feedback on this new laboratory experiment was very positive. It was ranked top among all physics experiments offered as part of that subject (Physics for Life Sciences) in 2009 and top among all physics experiments presented for peer evaluation at the Advanced Science Education Learning Laboratory Workshop in April 2010 at the University of Adelaide, Australia. All three main components of the UV Radiation experiment - pre-lab exercises, taking measurements, and a group discussion led by a demonstrator, were assessed by the students and by the teaching academics as a very important and valuable contribution to learning.

Solar Exposure and Residential Geographic History in Relation to Exfoliation Syndrome in the United States and Israel

PubMed Central

Pasquale, Louis R.; Jiwani, Aliya Z.; Zehavi-Dorin, Tzukit; Majd, Arow; Rhee, Douglas J.; Chen, Teresa; Turalba, Angela; Shen, Lucy; Brauner, Stacey; Grosskreutz, Cynthia; Gardiner, Matthew; Chen, Sherleen; Borboli-Gerogiannis, Sheila; Greenstein, Scott H.; Chang, Kenneth; Ritch, Robert; Loomis, Stephanie; Kang, Jae H.; Wiggs, Janey L.; Levkovitch-Verbin, Hani

2014-01-01

Importance Residential (geographic) history and extent of solar exposure may be important risk factors for exfoliation syndrome, but detailed lifetime solar exposure has not been previously evaluated in exfoliation syndrome. Objective To assess the relation between residential history, solar exposure and exfoliation syndrome. Design Clinic-based, case control studies. Setting A clinical center in the United States and in Israel. Participants Exfoliation syndrome cases and controls (all 60+ years old Caucasians) enrolled from 2010 to 2012 (United States: 118 cases and 106 controls; Israel: 67 cases and 72 controls). Main Outcomes and Measures Weighted lifetime average latitude of residence and average number of hours per week spent outdoors as determined by validated questionnaires. Results In multivariable analyses, each degree of weighted lifetime average residential latitude away from the equator was associated with an 11% increased odds of exfoliation syndrome (pooled odds ratio = 1.11; 95% CI: 1.05-1.17; p < .001). Furthermore, every hour per week spent outdoors during the summer, averaged over a lifetime, was associated with a 4% increased odds of exfoliation syndrome (pooled odds ratio = 1.04; 95% CI: 1.00-1.07; p = .03). For every 1% of average lifetime summer time between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. that sunglasses were worn, the odds of exfoliation syndrome decreased by 2% (odds ratio = 0.98; 95% CI: 0.97-0.99; p < .001) in the United States, but not in Israel (odds ratio = 1.00; 95% CI: 0.99-1.01; p = .92; p for heterogeneity = .005). In the United States, after controlling for important environmental covariates, history of work over water or snow was associated with increased odds of exfoliation syndrome (odds ratio = 3.86; 95% CI: 1.36-10.9); in Israel, there were too few people with such history for analysis. We did not identify an association between brimmed hat wear and exfoliation syndrome (p>.57). Conclusion and Relevance Lifetime outdoor activities may contribute to exfoliation syndrome. The association with work over snow or water and the lack of association with brimmed hat wear suggests that ocular exposure to light from reflective surfaces may be an important type of exposure in exfoliation syndrome etiology. PMID:25188364

Complete or partial circadian re-entrainment improves performance, alertness, and mood during night-shift work.

PubMed

Crowley, Stephanie J; Lee, Clara; Tseng, Christine Y; Fogg, Louis F; Eastman, Charmane I

2004-09-15

To assess performance, alertness, and mood during the night shift and subsequent daytime sleep in relation to the degree of re-alignment (re-entrainment) of circadian rhythms with a night-work, day-sleep schedule. Subjects spent 5 consecutive night shifts (11:00 pm-7:00 am) in the lab and slept at home in darkened bedrooms (8:30 am-3:30 pm). Subjects were categorized by the degree of re-entrainment attained after the 5 night shifts. Completely re-entrained: temperature minimum in the second half of daytime sleep; partially re-entrained: temperature minimum in the first half of daytime sleep; not re-entrained: temperature minimum did not delay enough to reach daytime sleep. See above. Young healthy adults (n = 67) who were not shift workers. Included bright light during the night shifts, sunglasses worn outside, a fixed dark daytime sleep episode, and melatonin. The effects of various combinations of these interventions on circadian re-entrainment were previously reported. Here we report how the degree of re-entrainment affected daytime sleep and measures collected during the night shift. Salivary melatonin was collected every 30 minutes in dim light (<20 lux) before and after the night shifts to determine the dim light melatonin onset, and the temperature minimum was estimated by adding a constant (7 hours) to the dim light melatonin onset. Subjects kept sleep logs, which were verified by actigraphy. The Neurobehavioral Assessment Battery was completed several times during each night shift. Baseline sleep schedules and circadian phase differed among the 3 re-entrainment groups, with later times resulting in more re-entrainment. The Neurobehavioral Assessment Battery showed that performance, sleepiness, and mood were better in the groups that re-entrained compared to the group that did not re-entrain, but there were no significant differences between the partial and complete re-entrainment groups. Subjects slept almost all of the allotted 7 hours during the day, and duration did not significantly differ among the re-entrainment groups. In young people, complete re-entrainment to the night-shift day-sleep schedule is not necessary to produce substantial benefits in neurobehavioral measures; partial re-entrainment (delaying the temperature minimum into the beginning of daytime sleep) is sufficient. The group that did not re-entrain shows that a reasonable amount of daytime sleep is not enough to produce good neurobehavioral performance during the night shift. Therefore, some re-alignment of circadian rhythms is recommended.

Addressing dental fear in children with autism spectrum disorders: a randomized controlled pilot study using electronic screen media.

PubMed

Isong, Inyang A; Rao, Sowmya R; Holifield, Chloe; Iannuzzi, Dorothea; Hanson, Ellen; Ware, Janice; Nelson, Linda P

2014-03-01

Dental care is a significant unmet health care need for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Many children with ASD do not receive dental care because of fear associated with dental procedures; oftentimes they require general anesthesia for regular dental procedures, placing them at risk of associated complications. Many children with ASD have a strong preference for visual stimuli, particularly electronic screen media. The use of visual teaching materials is a fundamental principle in designing educational programs for children with ASD. To determine if an innovative strategy using 2 types of electronic screen media was feasible and beneficial in reducing fear and uncooperative behaviors in children with ASD undergoing dental visits. We conducted a randomized controlled trial at Boston Children's Hospital dental clinic. Eighty (80) children aged 7 to 17 years with a known diagnosis of ASD and history of dental fear were enrolled in the study. Each child completed 2 preventive dental visits that were scheduled 6 months apart (visit 1 and visit 2). After visit 1, subjects were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 groups: (1) group A, control (usual care); (2) group B, treatment (video peer modeling that involved watching a DVD recording of a typically developing child undergoing a dental visit); (3) group C, treatment (video goggles that involved watching a favorite movie during the dental visit using sunglass-style video eyewear); and (4) group D, treatment (video peer modeling plus video goggles). Subjects who refused or were unable to wear the goggles watched the movie using a handheld portable DVD player. During both visits, the subject's level of anxiety and behavior were measured using the Venham Anxiety and Behavior Scales. Analyses of variance and Fisher's exact tests compared baseline characteristics across groups. Using intention to treat approach, repeated measures analyses were employed to test whether the outcomes differed significantly: (1) between visits 1 and 2 within each group and (2) between each intervention group and the control group over time (an interaction). Between visits 1 and 2, mean anxiety and behavior scores decreased significantly by 0.8 points (P = .03) for subjects within groups C and D. Significant changes were not observed within groups A and B. Mean anxiety and behavior scores did not differ significantly between groups over time, although group A versus C pairwise comparisons showed a trend toward significance (P = .06). These findings suggest that certain electronic screen media technologies may be useful tools for reducing fear and uncooperative behaviors among children with ASD undergoing dental visits. Further studies are needed to assess the efficacy of these strategies using larger sample sizes. Findings from future studies could be relevant for nondental providers who care for children with ASD in other medical settings.

Assessment of Elementary School Students’ Sun Protection Behaviors

PubMed Central

Hunter, Seft; Wells, Kristen J.; Jacobsen, Paul B.; Lee, Ji-Hyun; Boulware, David; Love-Jackson, Kymia; Abdulla, Rania; Roetzheim, Richard G.

2013-01-01

Introduction Emerging studies suggest that excessive sun exposure in childhood contributes to the development of skin cancer later in life. Children rarely wear a wide-brimmed hat when outside although these hats offer the best protection to the areas on the face where children are most likely to be sunburned. The current study explores 4th grade student assessment of their sun protection behaviors outside at school and at times other than when they are at school. Method This study utilized baseline data collected in the Fall of 2006 for the Sun Protection for Florida’s Children (SPF) project. In brief, the SPF project is a group randomized trial to test the effectiveness of a school based intervention promoting sun protection in general, and hat use in particular. The project targets all 4th grade students in Hillsborough County Schools, FL. The data reported in this study were collected at baseline before any intervention activities was initiated. Approximately 2,086 4th grade students completed self-report surveys evaluating sun protection behaviors. Trained research assistants carried out 99 direct observations of physical education classes over a five week period during Fall 2006 in Tampa, Florida. Results In general, the self-reported use of various methods of sun protection was low. Approximately one third of students reported that they wore sunscreen (32.8%) or sunglasses (32.3%) before leaving home for school. Only a small percentage of students wore long sleeves (15.0%) or a hat with a brim (16.4%) before leaving for school. In addition, few students wore a hat with a wide brim when outside but not at school (16.4%). Students spent an average of 59.1 minutes per week outdoors while attending school and 35.5 minutes during peak sun exposure. In general, female students and Hispanic, African American, and students of other racial and ethnic groups were more likely to practice sun protection behaviors at school than white or male students. Students who attended schools with a mandatory uniform policy were less likely to wear hats with brims. Discussion A single sunburn heightens a child’s risk of developing skin cancer later on in life. Sun exposure at school poses a significant risk to student health and more needs to be done to promote the use of a wide-brimmed hat and limiting student sun exposure. A wide brimmed hat shows the most promise in helping students to protect the face at neck areas where sunburns are most likely to develop. More needs to be done to promote hat use and limiting sun exposure while children are at school. PMID:19686304

Veggie Hardware Validation Test Preliminary Results and Lessons Learned

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Massa, Gioia D.; Dufour, Nicole F.; Smith, T. M.

2014-01-01

The Veggie hardware validation test, VEG-01, was conducted on the International Space Station during Expeditions 39 and 40 from May through June of 2014. The Veggie hardware and the VEG-01 experiment payload were launched to station aboard the SpaceX-3 resupply mission in April, 2014. Veggie was installed in an Expedite-the-Processing-of-Experiments-to-Space-Station (ExPRESS) rack in the Columbus module, and the VEG-01 validation test was initiated. Veggie installation was successful, and power was supplied to the unit. The hardware was programmed and the root mat reservoir and plant pillows were installed without issue. As expected, a small amount of growth media was observed in the sealed bags which enclosed the plant pillows when they were destowed. Astronaut Steve Swanson used the wet/dry vacuum to clean up the escaped particles. Water insertion or priming the first plant pillow was unsuccessful as an issue prevented water movement through the quick disconnect. All subsequent pillows were successfully primed, and the initial pillow was replaced with a backup pillow and successfully primed. Six pillows were primed, but only five pillows had plants which germinated. After about a week and a half it was observed that plants were not growing well and that pillow wicks were dry. This indicated that the reservoir was not supplying sufficient water to the pillows via wicking, and so the team reverted to an operational fix which added water directly to the plant pillows. Direct watering of the pillows led to a recovery in several of the stressed plants; a couple of which did not recover. An important lesson learned involved Veggie's bellows. The bellows tended to float and interfere with operations when opened, so Steve secured them to the baseplate during plant tending operations. Due to the perceived intensity of the LED lights, the crew found it challenging to both work under the lights and read crew procedures on their computer. Although the lights are not a safety hazard, for visual comfort crewmembers were advised to wear sunglasses when working with the plants and then they can lift glasses to read procedures. Steve Swanson had already trail-blazed this procedure when he initiated VEG-01. The temperature and humidity data logger was relocated mid-experiment to provide measurements on both sides of the unit. Images of the plants were downlinked weekly, and videos of installation and harvest were recorded. This imaging frequency was not sufficient to monitor and respond to changes in plant growth. Plants, samples, and data loggers will be returned on SpaceX-4, scheduled to return the fall of 2014. Lessons learned will be translated into hardware and operational modifications for future Veggie payloads.

Pupillary Reconstruction and Outcome after Artificial Iris Implantation.

PubMed

Mayer, Christian S; Reznicek, Lukas; Hoffmann, Andrea E

2016-05-01

Patients with iris defects suffer from severe visual impairment, especially increased glare sensitivity and cosmetic disturbances. This constitutes a great psychological strain for those patients. Until recently, possible treatment options were iris print contact lenses, sunglasses, and simple iris prostheses. The aim of this study was to investigate structural and functional outcome parameters and patient satisfaction after implantation of this new artificial iris prosthesis. Prospective case series investigating functional results and patient satisfaction after surgical iris reconstruction. Thirty-seven consecutive patients with traumatic iris defects presenting from 2011 through 2014 underwent pupillary reconstruction with a new artificial iris implant at the Department of Ophthalmology, Technical University Munich. The custom-made, flexible silicone iris prosthesis ArtificialIris (HumanOptics, Erlangen, Germany) used in this study is a novel and innovative device in the surgical treatment of iris defects. Patients were examined before and after iris reconstruction with the iris implant placed in the ciliary sulcus. Change of best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), pupillary aperture, glare, contrast sensitivity, endothelial cell density, anterior chamber depth, anterior chamber angle, and patient satisfaction were assessed. Thirty-two eyes of 32 patients (mean age, 52.9±16.0 years) were included. After implantation and during follow-up, BCVA and IOP did not change significantly (BCVA, 0.77±0.62 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution [logMAR] preoperatively vs. 0.68±0.64 logMAR 1 month postoperatively [P = 0.792]; IOP, 14.94±3.55 mmHg preoperatively vs. 17.72±5.88 mmHg 1 month postoperatively [P = 0.197]). The pupillary aperture was reduced significantly (42.11±20.1 mm(2) to 8.7±0.3 mm(2); P < 0.001). Contrast sensitivity increased significantly (0.80±0.51 to 0.93±0.49; P = 0.014). Endothelial cell count revealed a significant decrease postoperatively (1949±716 per 1 mm(2) to 1841±689 per 1 mm(2); P = 0.003). Anterior chamber depth (4.03±1.06 mm preoperatively vs. 4.29±0.70 mm postoperatively; P = 0.186) and angle (43.2±13.5° preoperatively vs. 40.5±10.8° postoperatively; P = 0.772) showed no significant differences. Subjective impairment through glare (9.12±1.62 preoperatively vs. 3.07±2.29 postoperatively; P < 0.001) and cosmetic disturbance (6.33±3.21 preoperatively vs. 1.58±0.86 postoperatively; P < 0.001) improved significantly. Patient satisfaction with the overall result was 8.91±1.51 of 10 points on an analog scale. The implantation of the artificial iris is a new and effective therapeutic option for the treatment of distinctive traumatic iris defects and results in an individual, aesthetically appealing, and good functional outcome in addition to high patient satisfaction. Copyright © 2016 American Academy of Ophthalmology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

NEWS: Eye safety and the solar eclipse

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LeConte, David

1999-05-01

Total eclipses of the Sun are amongst nature's most magnificent spectacles, and offer the opportunity for an exceptional educational experience. Many people never see one in their lifetime, but it has been estimated that this August's eclipse will be seen by more people than any other. It would be a sadly lost opportunity if they were denied the experience because they fear a danger that is easily avoided. The dangers of eye damage are real and precautions need to be taken. Staring at the bright solar photosphere can cause temporary or permanent retinal damage. Since the retina has no pain receptors the observer can be unaware that the eye is being `cooked', and the damage may only become apparent several hours later. However, when the photosphere is completely blocked by the Moon during the brief period of totality (two minutes or less), it is quite safe to look directly. In fact, you will not otherwise see anything at all. It is a complex message to get across to the public, and especially to children, that protection is required during the partial phases but not during totality, and that those outside the path of totality require protection for the whole eclipse. The National Eclipse Group was established by PPARC in 1997 to coordinate educational activities, issue public information and give authoritative advice for the 1999 eclipse. It has published a Solar Eclipse Safety Code, which is available on the national eclipse web site (mentioned above). It advises that the safest way to view the Sun is indirectly, by projecting an image of the Sun with a `pinhole', mirror, binoculars or telescope. Most people, however, will wish to observe the eclipse directly. Sunglasses, photographic film, crossed polarizers, smoked glass and similar filters must not be used. The Safety Code states that the Sun may be viewed directly only through special filters made specifically for solar viewing. Such eclipse viewers are typically made of aluminized polyester film (often generically referred to as `aluminized Mylar') or polymer. Users should ensure that they are marked as having been supplied specifically for direct viewing of the Sun and carry the `CE' mark. To be awarded CE certification, the viewers must be tested in the visual, infrared and ultraviolet by Approved Bodies appointed by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, and they must pass a standard based on a specification prepared by Dr B Ralph Chou, University of Waterloo, Canada (see http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/safety2.html). Any method of solar eclipse observation, whether direct or indirect, is not without its hazards. Severe eye damage can be caused, for example, by looking through a pinhole, rather than at the projected image, and will certainly result from looking through any optical instrument. Eclipse viewers should be placed over the eyes before looking up at the Sun and not removed until after looking away. Whatever method is used, children must be clearly instructed and closely supervised. Eclipse viewers are probably not appropriate for very young children. Descriptions of observing methods are in the activities packs for primary and secondary schools prepared by the Association for Astronomy Education and are available from CLEAPSS Schools Science Service and the National Eclipse Line (0345 600444).

Signing off

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2001-07-01

Widget Jones's Highgate science week diary Saturday 17 March Alcohol units 20 (but all went up in flames—what a waste!), smoke—lots (but none from cigarettes!) (g. though possible concern about passive inhaling) Who needs a hangover when you've got crazy Highgate School chemist 'Zbig' Szydlo launching Science Week with exploding potato crisp cartons! Looks like that liquid nitrogen stuff might be good for chilling the Chardonnay though. Memo to self: buy earplugs next year and go with Shazzer so don't suffer embarrassment of grabbing hold of complete stranger during scary bits! Must take sunglasses too for big flash at the end—must admit Hydro Gin is a brand I've not come across, but sounds v.g. Monday 19 March Alcohol units 2 (fizzy wine at opening ceremony for refurbished Physics Department!), smoke—lots again (but all from Trevor's pipe!) Big coup as Trevor Baylis turned up to speak about inventing the clockwork radio. Not sure I'd have strength or coordination to wind one up before breakfast—would need to find environmentally aware boyfriend with healthy liver and strong wrist. We all proved weakest links when it came to the 'name a woman inventor' quiz—Trev was so right when he said that men don't realize that girls with great legs can have good ideas as well! But then went on to say that even the blokes often end up penniless and destined —like me the way things are going—to be discovered half eaten by Alsatians a couple of weeks after snuffing it in a lonely bedsit. Thursday 22 MarchAlcohol units 0 (but the first event was at 9 o'clock in the morning!), smoke—none (couldn't persuade any of the pupils to give me one!), endangered species saved: 1 (v.v.g. indeed) Lured by promise of 'live astrology in the classroom' I staggered out of bed at an ungodly hour hoping to find that my Venus was ascendant and Mark Darcy and I would be aligned soon. Initially disappointed to discover that it was in fact astronomy on the breakfast menu via a remotely controlled telescope near Los Angeles (where it was still dark for some reason), but gloom quickly replaced by encouraging notion that with 200 billion other stars in our galaxy you could put money on the existence of extraterrestrial life and thus of potential Mr Right out there somewhere. Then really fascinating lunchtime lecture by dishy New Scientist editor Jeremy Webb about how racy covers can even sell 'serious' magazines. Made copious notes in order to impress Daniel (my boss) and might even consider buying it to improve image. Wasn't sure I'd have the stamina for an afternoon talk by chemist John Emsley (from Cambridge so must be really brainy), but it was surprisingly interesting—about things called 'mollycules' which are everywhere. Apparently finger-nails have same ones as rhino horn, so can get aphrodisiac kick with a quick chew and do my bit for conservation all in one go. Brilliant! Trev was so right when he said that men don't realize that girls with great legs can have good ideas as well! David Smith and friends Highgate School, London

The human health effects of ozone depletion and interactions with climate change.

PubMed

Norval, M; Lucas, R M; Cullen, A P; de Gruijl, F R; Longstreth, J; Takizawa, Y; van der Leun, J C

2011-02-01

Depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer has led to increased solar UV-B radiation (280-315 nm) at the surface of the Earth. This change is likely to have had an impact on human exposure to UV-B radiation with consequential detrimental and beneficial effects on health, although behavioural changes in society over the past 60 years or so with regard to sun exposure are of considerable importance. The present report concentrates on information published since our previous report in 2007. The adverse effects of UV radiation are primarily on the eye and the skin. While solar UV radiation is a recognised risk factor for some types of cataract and for pterygium, the evidence is less strong, although increasing, for ocular melanoma, and is equivocal at present for age-related macular degeneration. For the skin, the most common harmful outcome is skin cancer, including melanoma and the non-melanoma skin cancers, basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. The incidence of all three of these tumours has risen significantly over the past five decades, particularly in people with fair skin, and is projected to continue to increase, thus posing a significant world-wide health burden. Overexposure to the sun is the major identified environmental risk factor in skin cancer, in association with various genetic risk factors and immune effects. Suppression of some aspects of immunity follows exposure to UV radiation and the consequences of this modulation for the immune control of infectious diseases, for vaccination and for tumours, are additional concerns. In a common sun allergy (polymorphic light eruption), there is an imbalance in the immune response to UV radiation, resulting in a sun-evoked rash. The major health benefit of exposure to solar UV-B radiation is the production of vitamin D. Vitamin D plays a crucial role in bone metabolism and is also implicated in protection against a wide range of diseases. Although there is some evidence supporting protective effects for a range of internal cancers, this is not yet conclusive, but strongest for colorectal cancer, at present. A role for vitamin D in protection against several autoimmune diseases has been studied, with the most convincing results to date for multiple sclerosis. Vitamin D is starting to be assessed for its protective properties against several infectious and coronary diseases. Current methods for protecting the eye and the skin from the adverse effects of solar UV radiation are evaluated, including seeking shade, wearing protective clothing and sunglasses, and using sunscreens. Newer possibilities are considered such as creams that repair UV-induced DNA damage, and substances applied topically to the skin or eaten in the diet that protect against some of the detrimental effects of sun exposure. It is difficult to provide easily understandable public health messages regarding "safe" sun exposure, so that the positive effects of vitamin D production are balanced against the negative effects of excessive exposure. The international response to ozone depletion has included the development and deployment of replacement technologies and chemicals. To date, limited evidence suggests that substitutes for the ozone-depleting substances do not have significant effects on human health. In addition to stratospheric ozone depletion, climate change is predicted to affect human health, and potential interactions between these two parameters are considered. These include altering the risk of developing skin tumours, infectious diseases and various skin diseases, in addition to altering the efficiency by which pathogenic microorganisms are inactivated in the environment.

Person-directed, non-pharmacological interventions for sleepiness at work and sleep disturbances caused by shift work.

PubMed

Slanger, Tracy E; Gross, J Valérie; Pinger, Andreas; Morfeld, Peter; Bellinger, Miriam; Duhme, Anna-Lena; Reichardt Ortega, Rosalinde Amancay; Costa, Giovanni; Driscoll, Tim R; Foster, Russell G; Fritschi, Lin; Sallinen, Mikael; Liira, Juha; Erren, Thomas C

2016-08-23

Shift work is often associated with sleepiness and sleep disorders. Person-directed, non-pharmacological interventions may positively influence the impact of shift work on sleep, thereby improving workers' well-being, safety, and health. To assess the effects of person-directed, non-pharmacological interventions for reducing sleepiness at work and improving the length and quality of sleep between shifts for shift workers. We searched CENTRAL, MEDLINE Ovid, Embase, Web of Knowledge, ProQuest, PsycINFO, OpenGrey, and OSH-UPDATE from inception to August 2015. We also screened reference lists and conference proceedings and searched the World Health Organization (WHO) Trial register. We contacted experts to obtain unpublished data. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) (including cross-over designs) that investigated the effect of any person-directed, non-pharmacological intervention on sleepiness on-shift or sleep length and sleep quality off-shift in shift workers who also work nights. At least two authors screened titles and abstracts for relevant studies, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias. We contacted authors to obtain missing information. We conducted meta-analyses when pooling of studies was possible. We included 17 relevant trials (with 556 review-relevant participants) which we categorised into three types of interventions: (1) various exposures to bright light (n = 10); (2) various opportunities for napping (n = 4); and (3) other interventions, such as physical exercise or sleep education (n = 3). In most instances, the studies were too heterogeneous to pool. Most of the comparisons yielded low to very low quality evidence. Only one comparison provided moderate quality evidence. Overall, the included studies' results were inconclusive. We present the results regarding sleepiness below. Bright light Combining two comparable studies (with 184 participants altogether) that investigated the effect of bright light during the night on sleepiness during a shift, revealed a mean reduction 0.83 score points of sleepiness (measured via the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS) (95% confidence interval (CI) -1.3 to -0.36, very low quality evidence). Another trial did not find a significant difference in overall sleepiness on another sleepiness scale (16 participants, low quality evidence).Bright light during the night plus sunglasses at dawn did not significantly influence sleepiness compared to normal light (1 study, 17 participants, assessment via reaction time, very low quality evidence).Bright light during the day shift did not significantly reduce sleepiness during the day compared to normal light (1 trial, 61 participants, subjective assessment, low quality evidence) or compared to normal light plus placebo capsule (1 trial, 12 participants, assessment via reaction time, very low quality evidence). Napping during the night shiftA meta-analysis on a single nap opportunity and the effect on the mean reaction time as a surrogate for sleepiness, resulted in a 11.87 ms reduction (95% CI 31.94 to -8.2, very low quality evidence). Two other studies also reported statistically non-significant decreases in reaction time (1 study seven participants; 1 study 49 participants, very low quality evidence).A two-nap opportunity resulted in a statistically non-significant increase of sleepiness (subjective assessment) in one study (mean difference (MD) 2.32, 95% CI -24.74 to 29.38, 1 study, 15 participants, low quality evidence). Other interventionsPhysical exercise and sleep education interventions showed promise, but sufficient data to draw conclusions are lacking. Given the methodological diversity of the included studies, in terms of interventions, settings, and assessment tools, their limited reporting and the very low to low quality of the evidence they present, it is not possible to determine whether shift workers' sleepiness can be reduced or if their sleep length or quality can be improved with these interventions.We need better and adequately powered RCTs of the effect of bright light, and naps, either on their own or together and other non-pharmacological interventions that also consider shift workers' chronobiology on the investigated sleep parameters.

Observing a Burst with Sunglasses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2003-11-01

Unique Five-Week VLT Study of the Polarisation of a Gamma-Ray Burst Afterglow "Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs)" are certainly amongst the most dramatic events known in astrophysics. These short flashes of energetic gamma-rays, first detected in the late 1960's by military satellites, last from less than one second to several minutes. GRBs have been found to be situated at extremely large ("cosmological") distances. The energy released in a few seconds during such an event is larger than that of the Sun during its entire lifetime of more than 10,000 million years. The GRBs are indeed the most powerful events since the Big Bang known in the Universe, cf. ESO PR 08/99 and ESO PR 20/00. During the past years circumstantial evidence has mounted that GRBs signal the collapse of extremely massive stars, the so-called hypernovae. This was finally demonstrated some months ago when astronomers, using the FORS instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), documented in unprecedented detail the changes in the spectrum of the light source ("the optical afterglow") of the gamma-ray burst GRB 030329 (cf. ESO PR 16/03). A conclusive and direct link between cosmological gamma-ray bursts and explosions of very massive stars was provided on this occasion. Gamma-Ray Burst GRB 030329 was discovered on March 29, 2003 by NASA's High Energy Transient Explorer spacecraft. Follow-up observations with the UVES spectrograph at the 8.2-m VLT KUEYEN telescope at the Paranal Observatory (Chile) showed the burst to have a redshift of 0.1685 [1]. This corresponds to a distance of about 2,650 million light-years, making GRB 030329 the second-nearest long-duration GRB ever detected. The proximity of GRB 030329 resulted in very bright afterglow emission, permitting the most extensive follow-up observations of any afterglow to date. A team of astronomers [2] led by Jochen Greiner of the Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (Germany) decided to make use of this unique opportunity to study the polarisation properties of the afterglow of GRB 030329 as it developed after the explosion. Hypernovae, the source of GRBs, are indeed so far away that they can only be seen as unresolved points of light. To probe their spatial structure, astronomers have thus to rely on a trick: polarimetry (see ESO PR 23/03). Polarimetry works as follows: light is composed of electromagnetic waves which oscillate in certain directions (planes). Reflection or scattering of light favours certain orientations of the electric and magnetic fields over others. This is why polarising sunglasses can filter out the glint of sunlight reflecting off a pond. The radiation in a gamma-ray burst is generated in an ordered magnetic field, as so-called synchrotron radiation [3]. If the hypernova is spherically symmetric, all orientations of the electromagnetic waves will be present equally and will average out, so there will be no net polarisation. If, however, the gas is not ejected symmetrically, but into a jet, a slight net polarisation will be imprinted on the light. This net polarisation will change with time since the opening angle of the jet widens with time, and we see a different fraction of the emission cone. Studying the polarisation properties of the afterglow of a gamma-ray burst thus allows to gain knowledge about the underlying spatial structures and the strength and orientation of the magnetic field in the region where the radiation is generated. " And doing this over a long period of time, as the afterglow fades and evolves, provides us with a unique diagnostic tool for gamma-ray burst studies ", says Jochen Greiner . Although previous single measurements of the polarisation of GRB's optical afterglow exist, no detailed study has ever been done of the evolution of polarisation with time. This is indeed a very demanding task, only possible with an extremely stable instrument on the largest telescope... and a sufficient bright optical afterglow. As soon as GRB 030329 was detected, the team of astronomers therefore turned to the powerful multi-mode FORS1 instrument on the VLT ANTU telescope. They obtained 31 polarimetric observations over a period of 38 days, enabling them to measure, for the first time , the changes of the polarisation of an optical gamma-ray burst afterglow with time. This unique set of observational data documents the physical changes in the remote object in unsurpassed detail. Their data show the presence of polarisation at the level of 0.3 to 2.5 % throughout the 38-day period with significant variability in strength and orientation on timescales down to hours. This particular behaviour has not been predicted by any of the major theories. Unfortunately, the very complex light curve of this GRB afterglow, in itself not understood, prevents a straightforward application of existing polarisation models. " It turns out that deriving the direction of the jet and the magnetic field structure is not as simple as we thought originally ", notes Olaf Reimer , another member of the team. " But the rapid changes of the polarisation properties, even during smooth phases of the afterglow light curve, provide a challenge to afterglow theory ". " Possibly ", adds Jochen Greiner , " the overall low level of polarisation indicates that the strength of the magnetic field in the parallel and perpendicular directions do not differ by more than 10%, thus suggesting a field strongly coupled with the moving material. This is different from the large-scale field which is left-over from the exploding star and which is thought to produce the high-level of polarisation in the gamma-rays. " More Information The research described in this Press Release will appear under the title " The evolution of the polarisation of the afterglow of GRB 030329 " by Jochen Greiner et al. in the November 13, 2003 issue of the science journal "Nature". A German translation of the information of this page can be found at Astronomie.de. Notes [1]: In astronomy, the "redshift" denotes the factor by which the lines in the spectrum of an object are shifted towards longer wavelengths. Since the redshift of a cosmological object increases with distance, the observed redshift of a remote galaxy also provides an estimate of its distance. [2]: Members of the team include Jochen Greiner, Arne Rau (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Germany), Sylvio Klose, Bringfried Stecklum (Thüringer Landessternwarte Tautenburg, Germany), Klaus Reinsch (Universitätssternwarte Göttingen, Germany), Hans Martin Schmid (Institut für Astronomie Zürich, Switzerland ), Re'em Sari (California Institute of Technology, USA), Dieter H. Hartmann (Clemson University, USA), Chryssa Kouveliotou (NSSTC, Huntsville, Alabama, USA), Eliana Palazzi (Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica, Bologna, Italy), Christian Straubmeier (Physikalisches Institut Köln, Germany), Sergej Zharikov, Gaghik Tovmassian (Instituto de Astronomia Ensenada, Mexico), Otto Bärnbantner, Christop Ries (Wendelstein-Observatorium München, Germany), Emmanuel Jehin, Andreas Kaufer (European Southern Observatory, Chile), Arne Henden (USNO Flagstaff, USA), Anlaug A. Kaas (NOT, La Palma, Spain), Tommy Grav (University of Oslo, N), Jens Hjorth, Holger Pedersen (Astronomical Observatory Copenhagen, Denmark), Ralph A.M.J. Wijers (Astronomical Institute Anton Pannekoek, Amsterdam, The Netherlands), Hye-Sook Park (Lawrence Livermore Nat. Laboratory, USA), Grant Williams (MMT Observatory, Tucson, USA), Olaf Reimer (Theoretische Weltraum- und Astrophysik Universität Bochum, Germany) [3]: When electrons - which are electrically charged - move through a magnetic field, they spiral around an axis defined by the local magnetic field. Electrons of high energy spiral very rapidly, at speeds near the speed of light. Under such conditions, the electrons emit highly polarised electromagnetic radiation. The intensity of this radiation is related to the strength of the magnetic field and the number and energy distribution of the electrons caught in this field. Many cosmic radio sources have been found to emit synchrotron radiation - one of the best examples is the famous Crab Nebula, depicted in ESO PR Photo 40f/99.

Sun protection for preventing basal cell and squamous cell skin cancers.

PubMed

Sánchez, Guillermo; Nova, John; Rodriguez-Hernandez, Andrea Esperanza; Medina, Roger David; Solorzano-Restrepo, Carolina; Gonzalez, Jenny; Olmos, Miguel; Godfrey, Kathie; Arevalo-Rodriguez, Ingrid

2016-07-25

'Keratinocyte cancer' is now the preferred term for the most commonly identified skin cancers basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC), which were previously commonly categorised as non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC). Keratinocyte cancer (KC) represents about 95% of malignant skin tumours. Lifestyle changes have led to increased exposure to the sun, which has, in turn, led to a significant increase of new cases of KC, with a worldwide annual incidence of between 3% and 8%. The successful use of preventive measures could mean a significant reduction in the resources used by health systems, compared with the high cost of the treatment of these conditions. At present, there is no information about the quality of the evidence for the use of these sun protection strategies with an assessment of their benefits and risks. To assess the effects of sun protection strategies (i.e. sunscreen and barrier methods) for preventing keratinocyte cancer (that is, basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) of the skin) in the general population. We searched the following databases up to May 2016: the Cochrane Skin Group Specialised Register, CENTRAL, MEDLINE, Embase, and LILACS. We also searched five trial registries and the bibliographies of included studies for further references to relevant trials. We included randomised controlled clinical trials (RCTs) of preventive strategies for keratinocyte cancer, such as physical barriers and sunscreens, in the general population (children and adults), which may provide information about benefits and adverse events related to the use of solar protection measures. We did not include trials focused on educational strategies to prevent KC or preventive strategies in high-risk groups. Our prespecified primary outcomes were BCC or cSCC confirmed clinically or by histopathology at any follow-up and adverse events. Two review authors independently selected studies for eligibility using Early Review Organizing Software (EROS). Similarly, two review authors independently used predesigned data collection forms to extract information from the original study reports about the participants, methods of randomisation, blinding, comparisons of interest, number of participants originally randomised by arm, follow-up losses, and outcomes, and they assessed the risk of bias. We resolved any disagreement by consulting a third author and contacted trial investigators of identified trials to obtain additional information. We used standard methodological procedures expected by Cochrane. We included one RCT (factorial design) that randomised 1621 participants.This study compared the daily application of sunscreen compared with discretionary use of sunscreen, with or without beta-carotene administration, in the general population. The study was undertaken in Australia; 55.2% of participants had fair skin, and they were monitored for 4.5 years for new cases of BCC or cSCC assessed by histopathology. We found this study to be at low risk of bias for domains such as allocation, blinding, and incomplete outcome data. However, we found multiple unclear risks related to other biases, including an unclear assessment of possible interactions between the effects of the different interventions evaluated (that is, sunscreen and beta-carotene). We found no difference in terms of the number of participants developing BCC (n = 1621; risk ratio (RR) 1.03, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.74 to 1.43) or cSCC (n = 1621; RR 0.88, 95% CI 0.50 to 1.54) when comparing daily application of sunscreen with discretionary use, even when analyses were restricted to groups without beta-carotene supplementation. This evidence was of low quality, which means that there is some certainty that future studies may alter our confidence in this evidence.We reported adverse events in a narrative way and included skin irritation or contact allergy.We identified no studies that evaluated other sun protection measures, such as the use of sun-protective clothing, sunglasses, or hats, or seeking the shade when outdoors. In this review, we assessed the effect of solar protection in preventing the occurrence of new cases of keratinocyte cancer. We only found one study that was suitable for inclusion. This was a study of sunscreens, so we were unable to assess any other forms of sun protection. The study addressed our prespecified primary outcomes, but not most of our secondary outcomes. We were unable to demonstrate from the available evidence whether sunscreen was effective for the prevention of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) or cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC).Our certainty in the evidence was low because there was a lack of histopathological confirmation of BCC or cSCC in a significant percentage of cases. Amongst other sources of bias, it was not clear whether the study authors had assessed any interaction effects between the sunscreen and beta-carotene interventions. We think that further research is very likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and is likely to change the estimate.

How do environmental and behavioral factors impact ultraviolet radiation effects on health: the RISC-UV Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Correa, M. P.; Godin-Beekmann, S.; Haeffelin, M.; Saiag, P.; Mahe, E.; Brogniez, C.; Dupont, J. C.; Pazmiño, A.; Auriol, F.; Bonnel, B.

2009-04-01

Introduction: RISC-UV is a research project on "Impact of climate change on ultraviolet radiation and risks for health", a research project in which physicists, meteorologists and physicians work together to assess the relative role played by environmental and behavioral factors in the UV-related diseases as skin cancer and vitamin D deficiency. Environmental factors are related to the role played by the alteration in intensity of UV radiation at the Earth's surface resulting from variation in several factors affected by climate change and human activities: stratospheric ozone, cloud cover, aerosols and the reflectivity of the surface. On the other hand, behavioral factors are related to the sun over/underexposure and the correct use of sun-protection (hats, caps, sunglasses, sunscreen lotion, etc.). RISC-UV is organized around three main areas: 1) Organization of a workshop, scheduled for January 2009, which aims to describe the state of the art in the subject within each community and define the requirements of pathologists for epidemiological studies; 2) A pilot study intended to evaluate the consistency between UV measurements delivered simultaneously by satellite-based instruments, ground instruments, radiometers and individual dosimeters. This study is based on measurements campaigns and an analysis of the long-term consistency of data series relating to UV radiation and associated parameters; and 3) Analysis of the weights of medical, behavioral and environmental parameters involved in skin carcinogenesis. A detailed description of these areas can be found in http://www.gisclimat.fr/Doc/GB/D_projects/RISC-UV_GB.html. This presentation focuses on the first results of the UV experimental measurements performed between September 8th and October 8th 2008 in Palaiseau, France (48.7˚ N; 2.2˚ E; 170m - Haeffelin et al., 2005). A second campaign is foreseen for the spring of 2009. The purpose of these campaigns is to obtain, analyze and quantitatively link the UV radiation data obtained at various spatial scales (satellite, ground-based and spot measurements) by a variety of measuring systems. Moreover a set of atmospheric parameters (total ozone column, the vertical profile and optical thickness of aerosols, cloud cover and solar albedo) related to UV radiation is also collected. Material: The instrumental set consisted of several instruments for: 1) UV radiation measurements (a spectroradiometer, UV-A, UV-B, Erythemal UV and broadband solar pyranometers); 2) cloud, ozone and aerosol observations (photometer, Lidar and radiometers); and 3) personal monitors for UV index measurements, as handhelds, watches and mini-station. Results: Measurements performed in cloudy and sunny days around noon local time (± 1h) showed mean values of 3.3 ± 1.0 UVI, and the maximum UVI was 5.5 at noon on a clear sky day (September 14). The influence of cirrus clouds and aerosols radiation attenuation is currently studied on several case studies. From the mean UVI values, we estimated the time of necessary exposure for the induction of erythema of the skin and for the synthesis 1000 UI of vitamin D per day (1000 UI). (McKenzie et al., 2008). Preliminary results show that around solar noon (between 9 and 12 UTC that is 11 and 14 local time), on the one hand, about 45 min of exposure is required to cause skin redness and consequently lead to harmful effects on the human health. On the other hand, this exposure can be insufficient to lead to beneficial effects if we consider only the generally exposed parts of the body, as the hands and the face. It is only in the extreme conditions - exposure of the whole body - that the synthesis of the vitamin D can be done in 10 to 20 minutes. Otherwise an exposure during several hours is necessary. These results are particularly interesting with respect to possible problems of lack of vitamin D in the French population, mainly rickets (children) and osteosporosis (old persons), as well as other diseases related to the lack of vitamin D (Holick, 2004). A second campaign will be carried out during Spring 2009. This campaign will mainly focus on: 1) the comparisons of satellite retrievals and ground-based UV observations in order to relate different scales of UV measurements. Surface measurements will be performed in ten different sites located in the city of Paris and its suburbs; 2) the analysis of UV measurements in tilted surfaces using four pyranometers installed in different angles (horizontal, 45˚ , 90˚ and 180˚ ) ; 3) the measurements of surface albedo; and 4) the evaluation of cirrus and aerosol impact on UV radiation at the surface using collocated measurements like Lidar and Sunphotometers. Acknowledgments: SIRTA team. References: M. Haeffelin et al. SIRTA, a ground-based atmospheric observatory for cloud and aerosol research. Ann. Geophys., 23, 253-275, 2005 Holick, MF. Vitamin D: importance in the prevention of cancers, type 1 diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Am J Clin Nutr 2004;79:362-71. Mc Kenzie, R; JB Liley; L.O Björn. UV Radiation: Balancing Risks and Benefits. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 2008.

News from Online: A Spectrum of Color

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sweeney Judd, Carolyn

1999-06-01

Thomas Chasteen's site ( http://www.shsu.edu/~chm_tgc/sounds/sound.html) shows how to separate colors using a tuneable monochromator. This graphic comes from his monochromator animation ( http://www.shsu.edu/~chemistry/monochromator/mono.gif). Science Media's site ( http://www.scimedia.com/index.html#scimedia) includes spectroscopy tutorials by Brian Tissue. This graphic can be found at http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/light/graphics/em-rad.gif (©1998 B. M. Tissue, www.scimedia.com). All the colors in the rainbow! Now that is a good place to start. Go to About Rainbows ( http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/staff/blynds/rnbw.html), a tutorial from astronomer Beverly Lynds, working with the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. The tutorial begins with a historical perspective, complete with a sketch by René Descartes in 1637. The bibliography makes this tutorial a good starting point for color exploration. About Rainbows brings you questions to explorefor example, "What happens when you look at a rainbow through dark glasses?" Try the links to these other sites. Project SkyMath: Making Mathematical Connections ( http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/staff/blynds/Skymath.html) is especially for the middle school student. Reproducible masters of these teaching modules can be printed in English and Spanish. From Project SkyMath, you can go to Blue-Skies, a user-friendly graphical interface from The Weather Underground at the University of Michigan ( http://groundhog.sprl.umich.edu/BS.html). And speaking of blue skies, look at a great site, Why is the Sky Blue at http://acept.la.asu.edu/PiN/act/sky/sky.shtml. This is a super site from the Arizona Collaborative for Excellence in the Preparation of Teachers, by the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Arizona State University. If you go to Patterns in Nature: Light and Optics at http://acept.la.asu.edu/PiN/act/activities.shtml, plan to spend some time, for it is wonderful. Another link from the About Rainbows tutorial goes to an experiment that is suitable for older students, Circles of Light--The Mathematics of Rainbows at http://www.geom.umn.edu/education/calc-init/rainbow/. Frederick J. Wicklin and Paul Edelman of the University of Minnesota note that this comprehensive lab is based on a module developed by Steven Janke. Go back to About Rainbows to link to a Java applet, allowing you to change the incident angle and color of light striking a water droplet. This great teaching device is from Fu-Kwun Hwang of the National Taiwan Normal University at http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava /Rainbow/rainbow.html. And while you are here in this site (choose English or Chinese), look at the more than 30 Java applets created by F.-K. Hwang at http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava/index.html. The interactive applet on Shadow/Image and Color is great fun, (http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava/shadow /shadow.html). From mixing colors, we can go to Thomas Chasteen's fine work at http://www.shsu.edu/~chm_tgc/sounds/sound.html for an animation (and movie also) of how to separate colors using a tuneable monochromator ( http://www.shsu.edu/~chemistry/monochromator/mono.gif). This colorful graphic, showing incoming parallel white light, is clipped from that monochromator animation. While you are here at this site at Sam Houston State University, look at the other great animations and movies, including a movie showing solution-phase chemiluminescence at http://www.shsu.edu/~chm_tgc/chemilumdir/movie.html. So now that we have explored the breaking down of light into its component colors, we need to also look at another process--polarizing light. Let's go to Science Media's comprehensive site ( http://www.scimedia.com/index.html#scimedia) to examine polarized light ( http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/spec/molec/polarim.htm). Of course, most sunglasses polarize light--bringing us back to the question of the rainbow again. Explore here for a while--appreciate the beautiful visible electromagnetic spectrum at http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/light/graphics/em-visib.jpg. Great spectroscopy tutorials from Brian Tissue of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University are found at Science Media's site. One of my favorite graphics ( http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/light/graphics/em-rad.gif) reminds us of why light is electromagnetic radiation. But how to we actually see color? Go to the Access Excellence Classic Collection sponsored by Genentech, Inc. (http://www.gene.com/ae/AE/AEC/CC/). From here, go to How We See: The First Steps of Human Vision at http://www.gene.com/ae/AE/AEC/CC/vision_background.html. Here are good graphics and explanations of the roles of rod and cone cells, and lots more! And marvel a little the next time you see a rainbow. World Wide Web Addresses About Rainbows http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/staff/blynds/rnbw.html Project SkyMath: Making Mathematical Connections http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/staff/blynds/Skymath.html The Weather Underground at the University of Michigan--Blue- Skies http://groundhog.sprl.umich.edu/BS.html Why is the Sky Blue http://acept.la.asu.edu/PiN/act/sky/sky.shtml Patterns in NatureLight and Optics Activities http://acept.la.asu.edu/PiN/act/activities.shtml Circles of Lightthe Mathematics of Rainbows http://www.geom.umn.edu/education/calc-init/rainbow/ The Physics of a Rainbow http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava /Rainbow/rainbow.html The NTNU Virtual Physics Laboratory http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava /index.html Shadow/Image and Color http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava/shadow/shadow.html Thomas Chasteen's Chemistry-Based QuickTime Movies, Animations, and Streaming Audio http://www.shsu.edu/~chm_tgc/sounds/sound.html Tuneable Monochromator http://www.shsu.edu/~chemistry/monochromator/mono.gif The Chemiluminescence Home Page http://www.shsu.edu/~chm_tgc/chemilumdir/movie.html Science Hypermedia Home Page http://www.scimedia.com/index.html#scimedia Polarimetry http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/spec/molec/polarim.htm The Visible Spectrum http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/light/graphics/em-visib.jpg Propagation Direction of Electromagnetic Radiation http://www.scimedia.com/chem-ed/light/graphics/em-rad.gif Access Excellence Classic Collection http://www.gene.com/ae/AE/AEC/CC/ How We SeeThe First Steps of Human Vision http://www.gene.com/ae/AE/AEC/CC/vision_background.html access date for all sites: April 1999

The VLT Measures the Shape of a Type Ia Supernova

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2003-08-01

First Polarimetric Detection of Explosion Asymmetry has Cosmological Implications Summary An international team of astronomers [2] has performed new and very detailed observations of a supernova in a distant galaxy with the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) at the Paranal Observatory (Chile). They show for the first time that a particular type of supernova, caused by the explosion of a "white dwarf", a dense star with a mass around that of the Sun, is asymmetric during the initial phases of expansion . The significance of this observation is much larger than may seem at a first glance . This particular kind of supernova, designated "Type Ia", plays a very important role in the current attempts to map the Universe. It has for long been assumed that Type Ia supernovae all have the same intrinsic brightness , earning them a nickname as "standard candles". If so, differences in the observed brightness between individual supernovae of this type simply reflect their different distances. This, and the fact that the peak brightness of these supernovae rivals that of their parent galaxy, has allowed to measure distances of even very remote galaxies . Some apparent discrepancies that were recently found have led to the discovery of cosmic acceleration . However, this first clearcut observation of explosion asymmetry in a Type Ia supernova means that the exact brightness of such an object will depend on the angle from which it is seen. Since this angle is unknown for any particular supernova, this obviously introduces an amount of uncertainty into this kind of basic distance measurements in the Universe which must be taken into account in the future. Fortunately, the VLT data also show that if you wait a little - which in observational terms makes it possible to look deeper into the expanding fireball - then it becomes more spherical. Distance determinations of supernovae that are performed at this later stage will therefore be more accurate. PR Photo 24a/03 : Spiral galaxy NGC 1448 and SN 2001el (DSS and NTT/EMMI). PR Photo 24b/03 : Optical spectrum of SN 2001el and fractional polarisation (VLT/FORS) Supernova explosions and cosmic distances During Type Ia supernova events, remnants of stars with an initial mass of up to a few times that of the Sun (so-called "white dwarf stars") explode, leaving nothing behind but a rapidly expanding cloud of "stardust". Type Ia supernovae are apparently quite similar to one another. This provides them a very useful role as "standard candles" that can be used to measure cosmic distances. Their peak brightness rivals that of their parent galaxy, hence qualifying them as prime cosmic yardsticks. Astronomers have exploited this fortunate circumstance to study the expansion history of our Universe. They recently arrived at the fundamental conclusion that the Universe is expanding at an accelerating rate, cf. ESO PR 21/98, December 1998 (see also the Supernova Acceleration Probe web page). The explosion of a white dwarf star In the most widely accepted models of Type Ia supernovae the pre-explosion white dwarf star orbits a solar-like companion star, completing a revolution every few hours. Due to the close interaction, the companion star continuously loses mass, part of which is picked up (in astronomical terminology: "accreted") by the white dwarf. A white dwarf represents the penultimate stage of a solar-type star. The nuclear reactor in its core has run out of fuel a long time ago and is now inactive. However, at some point the mounting weight of the accumulating material will have increased the pressure inside the white dwarf so much that the nuclear ashes in there will ignite and start burning into even heavier elements. This process very quickly becomes uncontrolled and the entire star is blown to pieces in a dramatic event. An extremely hot fireball is seen that often outshines the host galaxy. The shape of the explosion Although all supernovae of Type Ia have quite similar properties, it has never been clear until now how similar such an event would appear to observers who view it from different directions. All eggs look similar and indistinguishable from each other when viewed from the same angle, but the side view (oval) is obviously different from the end view (round). And indeed, if Type Ia supernova explosions were asymmetric, they would shine with different brightness in different directions. Observations of different supernovae - seen under different angles - could therefore not be directly compared. Not knowing these angles, however, the astronomers would then infer incorrect distances and the precision of this fundamental method for gauging the structure of the Universe would be in question. Polarimetry to the rescue A simple calculation shows that even to the eagle eyes of the VLT Interferometer (VLTI), all supernovae at cosmological distances will appear as unresolved points of light; they are simply too far. But there is another way to determine the angle at which a particular supernova is viewed: polarimetry is the name of the trick! Polarimetry works as follows: light is composed of electromagnetic waves (or photons) which oscillate in certain directions (planes). Reflection or scattering of light favours certain orientations of the electric and magnetic fields over others. This is why polarising sunglasses can filter out the glint of sunlight reflecting off a pond. When light scatters through the expanding debris of a supernova, it retains information about the orientation of the scattering layers. If the supernova is spherically symmetric, all orientations will be present equally and will average out, so there will be no net polarisation . If, however, the gas shell is not round, a slight net polarisation will be imprinted on the light. " Even for quite noticable asymmetries, however, the polarisation is very small and barely exceeds the level of one percent ", says Dietrich Baade, ESO astronomer and a member of the team that performed the observations. " Measuring them requires an instrument that is very sensitive and very stable . " The VLT observation of SN 2001el in NGC 1448 ESO PR Photo 24a/03 ESO PR Photo 24a/03 [Preview - JPEG: 620 x 400 pix - 156k [Normal - JPEG: 1240 x 800 pix - 396k] ESO PR Photo 24b/03 ESO PR Photo 24b/03 [Preview - JPEG: 400 x 524 pix - 104k [Normal - JPEG: 800 x 1047 pix - 240k] Captions : PR Photo 24a/03 shows the spiral galaxy NGC 1448, as seen in an archive image from the Digital Sky Survey (Courtesy of STScI) and as seen close to the brightness maximum of the supernova using EMMI on the NTT. SN 2001el is marked by the arrow. The field measures 4.5 x 4.5 arcmin 2 ; North is up and east is right. PR Photo 24b/03 illustrates the optical spectrum of SN 2001el in NGC 1448 (upper panel). The middle and lower panels show the corresponding fractional polarisations. They measure the different numbers of photons oscillating in perpendicular directions; they are directly related to the geometry of the supernova. The shaded area indicates the spectral signatures of high-velocity matter in the expanding envelope. The measurement in faint and distant light sources of differences at a level of less than one percent is a considerable observational challenge. "However, the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) offers the precision, the light collecting power, as well as the specialized instrumentation required for such a demanding polarimetric observation" , explains Dietrich Baade . "But this project would not have been possible without the VLT being operated in service mode. It is indeed impossible to predict when a supernova will explode and we need to be ready all the time. Only service mode allows observations at short notice. Some years ago, it was a farsighted and courageous decision by ESO's directorate to put so much emphasis on Service Mode. And it was the team of competent and devoted ESO astronomers on Paranal who made this concept a practical success" , he adds. The astronomers [1] used the VLT multi-mode FORS1 instrument to observe SN 2001el , a Type Ia supernova that was discovered in September 2001 in the galaxy NGC 1448, cf. PR Photo 24a/03 at a distance of 60 million light-years. Observations obtained about a week before this supernova reached maximum brightness around October 2 revealed polarisation at levels of 0.2-0.3% ( PR Photo 24b/03 ). Near maximum light and up to two weeks thereafter, the polarisation was still measurable. Six weeks after maximum, the polarisation had dropped below detectability. This is the first time ever that a normal Type Ia supernova has been found to exhibit such clear-cut evidence of asymmetry . Looking deeper into the supernova Immediately following the supernova explosion, most of the expelled matter moves at velocities around 10,000 km/sec. During this expansion, the outermost layers become progressively more transparent. With time one can thus look deeper and deeper into the supernova. The polarisation measured in SN 2001el therefore provides evidence that the outermost parts of the supernova (which are first seen) are significantly asymmetric . Later, when the VLT observations "penetrate" deeper towards the heart of the supernova, the explosion geometry is increasingly more symmetric. If modeled in terms of a flattened spheroidal shape, the measured polarisation in SN 2001el implies a minor-to-major axis ratio of around 0.9 before maximum brightness is reached and a spherically symmetric geometry from about one week after this maximum and onward. Cosmological implications One of the key parameters on which Type Ia distance estimates are based is the optical brightness at maximum. The measured asphericity at this moment would introduce an absolute brightness uncertainty (dispersion) of about 10% if no correction were made for the viewing angle (which is not known). While Type Ia supernovae are by far the best standard candles for measuring cosmological distances, and hence for investigating the so-called dark energy, a small measurement uncertainty persists. " The asymmetry we have measured in SN 2001el is large enough to explain a large part of this intrinsic uncertainty ", says Lifan Wang, the leader of the team. " If all Type Ia supernovae are like this, it would account for a lot of the dispersion in brightness measurements. They may be even more uniform than we thought ." Reducing the dispersion in brightness measurements could of course also be attained by increasing significantly the number of supernovae we observe, but given that these measurements demand the largest and most expensive telescopes in the world, like the VLT, this is not the most efficient method. Thus, if the brightness measured a week or two after maximum was used instead, the sphericity would then have been restored and there would be no systematic errors from the unknown viewing angle. By this slight change in observational procedure, Type Ia supernovae could become even more reliable cosmic yardsticks. Theoretical implications The present detection of polarised spectral features strongly suggests that, to understand the underlying physics, the theoretical modelling of Type Ia supernovae events will have to be done in all three dimensions with more accuracy than is presently done. In fact, the available, highly complex hydrodynamic calculations have so far not been able to reproduce the structures exposed by SN 2001el. More information The results presented in this press release have been been described in a research paper in "Astrophysical Journal" ("Spectropolarimetry of SN 2001el in NGC 1448: Asphericity of a Normal Type Ia Supernova" by Lifan Wang and co-authors, Volume 591, p. 1110).

Ep7_Total Eclipse over America

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-18

>> Houston, we have a podcast. Welcome to the official podcast of the nasa johnson space center, episode 7: total eclipse over america. I m gary jordan and i ll be your host today. So this is the podcast where we bring in the experts-- nasa scientists, engineers, astronauts-- all to tell you the coolest stuff about nasa. So today we re talking about eclipses with mark matney. He s a space debris scientist here at the nasa johnson space center in houston texas, and he also has degrees in astronomy and space physics, and is an avid eclipse aficionado. We had a great discussion about what an eclipse is, some of the history of eclipses, and some of the science that we ve learned and continue to learn from them. This is an exciting conversation, especially because on august 21, 2017, a total solar eclipse will sweep across america. Mark and i talked about where the eclipse will pass through and how you ll be able to see it. They don t happen very often-- the last time a total solar eclipse happened over the states was back in 1991, and we won t see another until 2024. Anyway, we ll get into all that good stuff during this episode. So with no further delay, let s go light speed and jump right ahead to our talk with dr. Mark matney. Enjoy. [ Music ] >> t minus five seconds and counting. Mark. [ Indistinct radio chatter ] >> houston, we have a podcast. [ Music ] >> all right, well, mark, thank you for coming on the podcast today. Perfect timing, because very soon we re going to have a total solar eclipse that s going to pass over the united states. And so i think this is a good chance for us to sit down and talk about eclipses. And you went above and beyond for this one, mark, because you have a lot of different things. I mean, we re talking a lot of science, we re talking a long and detailed history of eclipses. You know, this is not just a, ooh, look at that. Pretty eclipse. No, nasa s going all out for this-- is that fair to say? >> Well, i think this is-- i mean, eclipses have been part of human history as far back as we can record. People have been fascinated, scared, terrified by eclipses. >> Oh, sure. >> And a lot of important scientific discoveries have been driven by eclipses. I think today-- we re doing some science today, but much of the important science was done in the past. But this kind of links us in some sort of way to those early scientists who were trying to puzzle out the mysteries of the universe by using this amazing sight in the sky. So we have some science that s going on, we have some citizen science that s going on, and there s going to be a whole lot of people traveling to see this eclipse. In fact, i was reading that this eclipse is the first cross continent eclipse across the united states since the interstate system was built. >> Oh, wow. >> And so we might see one of the largest migrations of americans in a short period of time that we ve ever seen. [ Laughter ] because there s going to be a lot of people, perhaps tens of millions of people, traveling to see this eclipse. >> That s very true, and they re all going to be, i mean, closer to that nice, thin line-- we re talking about that path of totality, and we ll get into that really shortly, but you know, let s go and start at the very beginning, right? So we re talking about a total solar eclipse-- this is great-- passing over the united states. But what is that? What is a total solar eclipse? >> So a total eclipse is when the disk of the sun is completely covered by the moon. So the moon s size is maybe slightly larger than the sun, so we can get complete coverage. This particular eclipse is going to be about two and a half minutes of totality. Some eclipses are as high as seven minutes. Some of them are just a few seconds. >> And it s just the way things are aligning? >> Well, it turns out that the moon is actually not on a perfectly circular orbit. It s in a slightly elliptical orbit. So sometimes it s a little closer, and sometimes it s a little farther. >> Oh, i see. >> And so [ indistinct ] a little farther, it doesn t quite cover the surface of the sun. And what you end up with is a narrow ring all around. That s called an annular eclipse. And if the moon s a little larger-- in other words, a little closer, it appears a little larger in the sky, you get a total eclipse. And sometimes we actually have what s called a hybrid eclipse where you get an annular eclipse, but the mountains on the moon make it so it s actually a broken ring in the sky. It s so close, because actually, the mountains peeking up cover part of that sun ring. >> So can you see some of the sun peeking through those alleys, i guess? >> That s right, yes. >> Oh, interesting. >> And then that one, turns out if you could get higher in the altitude, in a balloon or plane, you might see a total eclipse in those kinds. But that s a special kind of eclipse that s actually quite rare. >> Wow. >> And then we also have a partial eclipse, and that s what-- it turns out this eclipse is interesting-- as far as i can tell, anyone in any of the 50 united states-- weather permitting-- should be able to see a partial eclipse, including alaska and hawaii. The partial eclipse is where the disk of the moon covers part of the sun but doesn t actually get to-- it s off to one side. >> Okay. >> And so you-- we re going to get a pretty good partial eclipse here from houston, but i think everybody, like i said, somewhere in the united states, one of the 50 states, should be able to see a partial eclipse. >> That ll be cool. >> So by the way, it s august 21st-- we didn t say the date. >> Yeah, so august 21st. And this will come out august 18th, so this ll be like-- >> oh, okay-- perfect. >> This ll be right next to it, yeah, absolutely. So a partial eclipse-- is there-- how-- is there a way that is very apparent to observe that? Like, will the sky get a little bit darker, or-- >> it depends on the percentage. When it s like about 50%, it s hard to notice. But once you get on to 60, 70, 80, 90%, the sky takes on an unusual color. And in fact, that s one of the things i m going to recommend eclipse observers-- just kind of note how the sky changes color, because it s a very interesting phenomenon. >> Yeah. >> But unless it s really-- in ancient times, people did not even notice a partial eclipse unless it was like 80, 90% because they started to see the sun dim, and they would look up at the sun and see there was no longer a disk in the sky. >> Wow. Okay, so from here in houston, what are we expecting percentage-wise? >> Well, i tried-- it s about somewhere around 70%. I don t know the exact area, but there s several tables. Also, that s another thing, is where you are, where the maximum eclipse changes on the clock. So there are computer resources where you can look and put in your location or your city and find out when the maximum eclipse is and how much. >> Oh, okay. Very cool. That s a lot of good stuff. All right, so that s 70%. We ll be able to see-- >> something like 70, yeah. >> A somewhat noticeable change in the sky, then, at least here from houston. That s really cool. So yeah, you said total versus partial. This is the solar eclipse, though, right? >> Right. >> This is when the moon is going in between the earth and the sun. >> Right. >> Like you said, they re relatively the same size in the sky, just based on distance and size, and so it only blocks off this tiny little strip of shadow that s going to go across the united states. And it goes-- you said it happens quite often, but just i guess at different parts of the world. >> Correct. >> It just so happens that it s going to line up this time going from coast to coast. >> And sometimes it s an annular, and sometimes-- but it turns out we get from three to five eclipses, solar eclipses, every year. >> Oh, okay. >> Which is actually kind of surprising. >> We meaning the earth. >> Someone on the earth, in other words, can see an eclipse. We actually have fewer-- there s another kind of eclipse called a lunar eclipse, and the lunar eclipse is when the earth gets between the moon and the sun. >> Right. >> And so as the moon moves into the shadow, it starts to turn dark, and sometimes has an interesting red color. >> Yeah. >> It turns out there are actually fewer of those than solar eclipses. >> Really? >> But because a whole hemisphere can see it, they re much-- you can see them much more often than solar eclipses. >> Oh, that-- okay. >> Because you re looking up in the sky and seeing the moon eclipse, so anybody on that side of the earth can see it-- weather permitting, of course. >> Wow. Why is it that color, though? >> Well, that s an interesting phenomenon. As you know, the sky is blue from the scattering of particles in the atmosphere-- it scatters the blue light. But the red is transmitted just like we see in a red sunset. Well, the earth s atmosphere actually refracts the red light, and so if you were standing on the moon during a lunar eclipse, the earth, of course, would block the sun, but you would see this red ring around the earth, which is the atmosphere refracting the light of the sun. >> So that s the red ring of the earth refracting off the surface of the moon? >> No, no, it s-- the light is coming through the atmosphere and refracting slightly to your position on the moon. >> Oh. >> So you would see this narrow, narrow red glowing ring around the earth. >> Oh, wow. >> So it s-- but of course, no one s ever seen that. >> Yeah. >> Maybe someday when we have a base on the moon. >> Oh, and so wait-- okay, so this is assuming that-- yeah, you re assuming that you are an observer on the moon. >> You re an astronaut standing on the moon, right. >> I see, and there s a red ring. So what about the lunar eclipse-- the perception from the earth? Doesn t a lunar eclipse-- the moon looks a little orange? >> Yeah, it s orange-ish, sometimes. It actually depends on-- it depends on what s happening in the atmosphere. >> Oh, okay. >> For instance, i saw an eclipse in 1982. We were expecting the red moon, but in fact, the moon looked charcoal gray. And that was right after the el chichon volcano in mexico erupted. And so the dust from the volcano had changed the dust in the atmosphere, so we didn t get much red. >> Oh. >> So it actually-- you never know what you re going to see when you see a lunar eclipse, but they re often red. And again, that s the red light that is bent by the earth s atmosphere and shines on the moon. >> Yeah, and it s reflecting-- interesting. So it s all entirely about perception, then, it s about the-- so you re a person on the earth, and this is what you perceive from the perspective of earth. If you were outside floating millions of miles away just observing it from afar, it would just look like the earth and the moon-- the moon wouldn t look a certain color. >> Well, you could see the color, because it s lit up with that color. Let me-- let s change it around. Let s say you were on the moon looking at the earth during a solar eclipse. And we have some photographs from the iss of previous eclipses, and you actually see a-- you can actually see the dark shadow. You can t see the sharp edge of the shadow, but you see this fuzzy black thing on the surface of the earth. And so you would see-- but instead of being the whole earth swallowed up, you just see this black fuzzy spot moving across the earth from space. >> Interesting. >> So hopefully-- it depends on where the iss will be at the time of the eclipse, but hopefully they ll be able to photograph it from-- they probably will not be in the eclipse path, but they could look down on the earth and see the shadow, hopefully, of the eclipse. >> Yeah, i think-- i think they are predicting that the iss is going to be somewhere over canada but will have a nice view of the states whenever it s actually the solar eclipse. >> It would be very, very coincidental if we happened to fly through the shadow, because the shadow is very narrow. It could happen, but i mean-- >> the odds are against us. >> The odds are against us. So a lunar eclipse happens at the full moon. >> Okay. >> When, of course, the sun is on the other side of the earth and the moon is-- if you re standing on the earth, the sun is behind you, because it s nighttime, and you see the-- and a solar eclipse happens at a new moon, when the moon is-- you can t really see it in the sky, because you re seeing the dark side of the moon. >> So you ll never see a crescent moon in a lunar eclipse? >> No, no, it s definitely a full moon, so as full as it gets. Another thing is lunar and solar eclipses are often paired, because that tilt of the moon s orbit, the point when it crosses the earth-sun orbit plane, is on both sides. And so usually we get an accompanying lunar eclipse with a solar eclipse. And in fact, the accompanying lunar eclipse for this eclipse is on august 7th, and will be visible from europe, africa, asia, and australia. >> Oh, okay. Well, there you go. >> Or was visible, i guess. >> August 7th, yeah. I guess-- aw. >> You want me to say that again? [ Laughter ] >> if we could go back in time okay, so i mean, that s kind of from the perspective of earth, right? We ve got solar eclipses, and when the moon is in between us here on earth and the sun, and then the opposite for the lunar eclipse. In general, if you had to give like a general overview, where else in the universe do eclipses happen? >> Everywhere. >> How about that. >> Anywhere where you have bodies moving around, one will often eclipse the view of another. But usually, what you-- you won t get to see the amazing sight on earth, because it s very rare that the object eclipsing looks in the sky the same size as the sun. >> Oh. >> So we know, for instance, there are eclipses caused by jupiter s moons as it orbits jupiter, and you can see the shadow on the surface of jupiter-- or the clouds, actually, of jupiter. >> Right. >> And in fact, there was a fellow named ole r mer-- if i m pronouncing correctly-- back in the 1600s that first detected the finite speed of light by looking at the timing of those eclipses on jupiter. So that s one of those science things that eclipses have allowed us to do. >> That s amazing-- just by looking at shadows across the universe, you can get all this crazy science. >> And sometimes-- i know we ve done occultations of stars, where a planet moves between us and the starlight of a star, and by measuring that star, we ve seen, like-- we ve found the rings of uranus, as the star would twinkle or would blink out just before uranus crossed the star. >> Oh. >> So you can actually do things like look for difficult to see rings, or also, as the light comes through the atmosphere, sometimes you can see the absorption of different chemicals in the atmosphere of the planet. >> And then understand the composition of the planet itself. >> Exactly. >> That s amazing. >> Let me add one thing we hadn t talked about. >> Yeah, sure. >> I found an interesting statistic, and it said that if you picked a random spot on the earth and you just stayed right there, you would see a solar eclipse about once every 375 years, on average. >> Okay, so you should move a little bit. >> Yeah, well-- you re not following. [ Laughter ] so during a normal person s long lifetime-- say, 70 years-- we re looking at a 20-25% chance that you would sometime in your lifetime see an eclipse, a total eclipse of the sun. So yes, it s rare, but not totally unknown. >> Yeah. >> So i just know that one never comes by my house, so i have to go chase it down. [ Laughter ] >> well, that s the great thing, is we have nasa-- we folks at nasa are actually looking at this stuff and making predictions. We know exactly where it s going to be on august 21st. >> That s correct, that s right. >> Yeah, so that kind of will help you see it a little bit, too. [ Laughter ] i think one of my favorites, though, when it comes to eclipses across the universe, is kepler, right? So if you think about-- you said occultations as one of them. That s when something passes in front of a star and changes the light that we re receiving. >> Right. >> That s how we are detecting planets outside of our solar system, correct? >> That s correct, yeah. The kepler mission is looking at a large group of stars and monitoring them constantly. And it has very, very sensitive instruments, so they can look at very small dips in the light as a planet-- a previously unknown planet-- transits the face of that star. And we ve been able-- and when they see them repeating, they can work out the relative sizes of the planets and their period, and work out where they are in orbit around that star. And we ve seen-- i don t know what the count is-- a thousand? >> Yeah, yeah. We keep finding more and more. >> There s a bunch of them. So this is actually one of the most interesting discoveries, i think, astronomers have made in the last several years, is that our galaxy is full of stars with planets. And it s pretty exciting-- it s kind of star trek stuff. >> It is! Especially just recently, the discovery of the trappist-1 system. >> Yes, indeed. >> And those-- we re talking about earth-like planets, and some of which are in what we like to call the goldilocks zone, right? >> That s right. >> And that s-- you know, water doesn t freeze, it doesn t-- >> that s right, it s not too hot, not too cold. >> Not too cold, right, and liquid water can exist. And that s conditions for life, and it s very exciting. >> It is. >> That s what we re looking for, right-- life outside of the universe. >> And i ll also mention we also have transits here, just like what we see with kepler, of the planets mercury and venus, which are inside the orbit of earth. And we recently had a venus transit visible from the us. >> Yeah, 2012, right?? >> That s right, i think it was 2012. And i ve also seen mercury transits as well. Those have an interesting history, because scientists in the 18th century were trying-- they d figured out the relative distance to the different planets, but they didn t know an absolute distance. And they were actually going to use different observers on the earth to measure the transit of venus to try and get an absolute scale. And so that was the cutting edge science in the 18th century. >> Wow. [ Laughter ] >> but so that s another point where transits and eclipses have been an important part of the history of science. >> Amazing. I mean, that s kind of a big theme here, right, especially for eclipses, is the science that we can get from observing these phenomena. >> That s right. >> So i mean, from here on the ground, what are some of the things that we can learn-- and i guess in the instance of a solar eclipse, but you know, eclipses in general-- what are some of the things that we can learn from studying these? >> Well, let s kind of go through some of the discoveries that were made with eclipses. >> Sure. >> So from ecl-- we all look up at the sun and see a bright disk. That s called the photosphere. It s very, very bright, and we ll talk about that a little bit. That s the part we re familiar with. It s about 10,000 degrees fahrenheit-- it s nice and hot. But during eclipses, astronomers notice some red layer-- a thin red layer around the sun. And that s known as the chromosphere. And that was discovered by eclipses, and it turns out chromosphere is due to emissions from atomic hydrogen in the sun s atmosphere. >> Okay. >> And so if you-- the soho spacecraft sometimes show-- i mean-- the soho spacecraft show-- is constantly monitoring the sun. And one of its instruments is a hydrogen alpha filter, and you can see what that chromosphere looks like. It s a very thin layer of the sun, again, that we discovered by looking at eclipses. The next section-- oh, by the way, some scientists-- in 1868, there was a new instrument that was developed called the spectroscope. And the spectroscope splits light into its component colors. And they had discovered that there were specific lines, almost like a fingerprint, that defined-- that were unique to each chemical, to each chemical element. >> Okay. >> And so there were-- some scientists were very excited to use the spectroscope to look at the eclipse. And in the chromosphere, they saw some lines from an element that they had never seen before. And they couldn t figure out what it was. So one of the scientists named it after the greek word for the sun-- helios. They named it helium. >> Oh! [ Laughter ] >> and it was several decades before helium was finally isolated and studied on the earth, but it was first discovered in the sun s atmosphere. >> How about that. That s-- is it called spectroscopy? >> Spectroscopy, yeah. They use a spectroscope for spectroscopy. >> Yeah, yeah, and studying the-- i guess there s little gaps in the light, and they look like gaps in the-- >> sometimes there s bright lines, sometimes there s dark lines. >> Okay. >> It depends on the situation. But the point is these lines are like a fingerprint. And that s how we understand the components of stars millions of lightyears away. We can-- >> so you said photosphere, and then you discovered the chromosphere, right? >> Chromosphere. >> So what s the difference between those? >> Well, the chromosphere is actually a very thin layer-- it s actually-- starts as cooler than the photosphere, and then it heats up again. >> Ooh. >> Solar astronomers are always trying to figure out the exact details, but what gets interesting is when you look up at the eclipse when it s total eclipse, there s what looks like a halo, or a garland, or a crown around it, and that s called the corona. So the chromosphere s a transition between the hot photosphere and the much hotter corona. And the corona is up to-- it s more than 100 times hotter than the photosphere. It s very, very hot. >> Wow. >> And that s, like i said, this halo that you see around the sun. That is actually very important-- to monitor that part of the sun-- in predicting solar storms. >> Oh. >> And solar storms affect things like satellites and our communication and our power systems. And so there are solar astronomers who are constantly monitoring the sun looking for these types of solar storms. But the corona was discovered by looking at eclipses. >> Wow. >> And in fact, it s so important that we ve launched satellites that create artificial eclipses. They put a little obstacle in the way so that we can monitor the chromosphere-- i m sorry, the corona-- at all times. >> So i guess, are they hard to predict, solar storms? >> They re getting better at it. The big thing is they need to be able to see on the far side of the sun. So we ve actually launched a couple of spacecraft called stereo, and they re now on the far side of the sun-- not totally-- they re part way around the earth s orbit, but they can see the other parts of the sun, and we can see storms developing as the sun rotates around. The sun actually rotates, also. >> Wow. So what happens if-- say there s an instance, if there s a solar storm, and it does disrupt satellite communications coverage, whatever it is. What can we expect if that were to happen? Are you talking about cell phones? Are you talking about-- what would happen here on earth? >> Well, one of the worst things we re worried about is a really, really big solar storm which could knock out power grids in certain areas. >> Wow. >> And so you could actually have power outages. >> That s heavy. >> But usually satellites, they put them in safe mode. But it can damage satellites. And as you know, telecommunications is a multi-million dollar business. >> Right. >> So there s a lot of interest in solar storms. >> But they have a safe mode to-- >> yep, that s right. >> That s amazing, okay. So they just put it in there if they see something bad coming. >> It s still dangerous, but they can put it in a safer mode. [ Laughter ] one other thing that was observed during eclipses is there s sometimes these little arcs-- they re not little-- they re bigger than the earth, but these little arcs of plasma jutting off the sun. And you ve probably seen pictures of them. They look like arches or flames coming off the sun. >> Yeah. >> They re called prominences, and they re plasma in the strong magnetic field of the sun moving through the atmosphere. And they re really quite spectacular. >> Yeah, i ve seen some images and videos of them-- they really are. It s amazing. >> Again, those were discovered by eclipses. And i ll tell you another set of experiments. It turned out that by the mid 1800s, scientists had started working out the mathematics of planets, and had noticed when a planet gets perturbed and sort of gets nudged a little bit, they said, well, that must mean another planet that s tugging on it with its gravity. And that s how neptune was discovered. They saw the perturbation in the motion of uranus. And they noticed that there was a slight perturbation in the orbit of mercury. So scientists began speculating that that was due to another planet even closer in to the sun, which they nicknamed vulcan. So what happened was they then sent-- in the 1860s and 1870s, scientists deployed around the world for some eclipses to try and look for vulcan. And they didn t find anything, which puzzled them. They looked at multiple eclipses, multiple times-- no vulcan. But in 1915, albert einstein began publishing-- began communicating his work on the general theory of relativity. And einstein had postulated that gravity is caused by the bending of spacetime. And one of his-- one of his-- one of the predictions of his theory was that you would see this perturbation of the orbit of mercury. So he explained that with his general theory of relativity. But another prediction was that this bending of spacetime would actually bend light. So he showed why there wasn t a vulcan, but then he said, if you look at an eclipse of the sun, and look at the light of stars very, very close to the disk of the sun, you should be able to see the light bent in a way that it displaces the apparent position of the star. In 1919, arthur eddington, the british astronomer, deployed for an eclipse out on an island in the atlantic ocean. And they actually measured this slight change in the apparent position of the stars. And it was a huge event, because when einstein postulated his theory of general relativity, it was crazy. It was overturning newton. And here they actually-- his prediction turned true, and that s sort of what propelled einstein into his fame, was that discovery. So that was perhaps the most important scientific discovery ever during an eclipse, was showing how the light of stars is bent by the presence of the mass of the sun. >> And that-- so it was just the mass of the sun. >> That's right. >> And there was no vulcan. >> No vulcan. [ Laughter ] although, there are two eclipse stories related, sort of quasi-related to the same thing there. >> But everything comes together, right? That s why we re-- like, going back to the general theme here, a lot of science to learn from eclipses. >> A lot of science. Let me talk about a couple things that are going on with the science this time around. >> Okay. >> We have one group that s going to have a series of telescopic cameras set up along the eclipse path. And they re going to try and take video of the inner corona, which is very difficult to see except during the eclipse. And the idea is one camera will record a little segment of the inner corona, and the next camera will record the next segment, and they can stitch them together and have a rather extended video of the corona. >> Oh. >> So for scientists who study the interaction of the corona. Another one is some other scientists are going to be studying the polarization. Some light is polarized in different directions that tells us information about the magnetic fields and other things. But they re going to be looking at the spectrum and the polarization of the-- again, the inner corona, which is difficult to measure in other ways, because it s difficult to get so close-- to measure such dim phenomena so close to the disk of the sun. >> And this is-- going back, i m sorry-- you might ve already addressed this, but these are nasa telescopes, or these are others? >> It s a variety of-- nasa s cooperating on some of these, and some of them are universities, and some of them are amateur. So it s actually a whole team of different kinds of people. >> Wow, okay. >> Nasa s helping to coordinate some of these. >> Yeah, all working together, okay. Cool. >> We ve got another group that are actually going to repeat the general theory of relativity experiment with some more modern digital equipment with more sensitive cameras to look for some very dim stars, again, to try and fine tune those measurements to see how close einstein got to the prediction. >> Wow. >> And then, we also have some radio enthusiasts who are-- during the daylight, the sun ionizes gas in the upper atmosphere and we have an ionosphere. And it, both enhances and sometimes interferes with radio communications. So these scientists are going to look at how the ionosphere changes as the sun gets eclipsed, and the sunlight starts to drop off, and then go back up again. So, they re going to observe how the ionosphere changes. >> Interesting. >> So lots of interesting experiments. And of course-- and many of these are by these amatuer citizen scientists, which is kind of a fun thing, too. >> Yeah, absolutely. So, we re measuring the earth s atmosphere, we re measuring a lot of about the sun. >> Mm-hmm. >> I know out of here, the wb-57, those high altitude planes, they re going to be flying above most of the atmosphere, about 90% of it, and they re going to take a look at the sun and study the sun s corona. >> Yeah, a bit. >> And measure how energy goes through the sun s atmosphere, but then also take a look at mercury. >> Oh, that s right. >> Yeah. >> I wanted to tell you, when you see the eclipse you will see a number of planets visible in the sky. >> Oh. >> So, if you get a chance, you ll see stars. Venus is off to the west, mars is even closer. It s-- venus is about 35 degrees to the west, mars is about 10 degrees to the west, mercury s about 10 degrees to the east, and jupiter s way over on the other side of the sky at 60 degrees to the east. And the star, regulus, which is a bright star, will be about 5 degrees to the east of the sun, so you can see if you can see that. >> And this will happen during totality, right? >> During totality, because the stars will come out. >> Wow, amazing. So you ll be able to see all of these, and you re talking about from the perspective if you re looking up and-- the sun-- >> right. >> Once it goes to totality-- and we can get to safety in a minute, but i do know, once it gets to totality you can take off your glasses for about that two minutes, right? >> That s right. Yeah. >> And then, that s when you ll be able to see all those different parts. >> Yes. >> That s really cool. >> Yeah, that s it. Let s talk a little about the history, because there s some interesting history, of course. >> Sure, yeah. >> The most famous story, which is probably legendary, but the story about a chinese astronomer, or possibly two chinese astronomers, named xi he, who was hired by the king. He was the high astronomer, the head astronomer. >> Mm-hmm. >> To make predictions about primarily with astrology to make sure that nothing bad was going to happen to the king. Well, apparently there was a solar eclipse he did not predict. >> Oh. >> And apparently, he had had a little too much to drink and he wasn t on the job when the time came. >> Oh. >> And the chinese actually thought, and a lot of ancient cultures thought, that something bad was happening. The chinese thought a dragon was swallowing the sun, and they would bang on pots and pans to scare the dragon away. And that s actually still practiced in many parts of the world, the bang on pots and pans. >> Yeah, they don t know the-- like, the science behind this total solar eclipse, so they re-- >> that s right. >> Yeah, right, go ahead. >> I think part of this tradition is passed on. >> Yeah, tradition, yeah. >> Well, unfortunately, this poor chinese astronomer that didn t do his job, he got executed. >> Oh. >> So, fortunately, we don t hold our scientists to this same level there. >> I m very thankful of that. >> Yes. >> I m sure we are. Yeah. >> But, lots of ancient people were scared of eclipses because they thought they-- i mean, it s a very amazing thing to happen in the sky and they were worried about it. It s warning of some tragedy. >> Mm-hmm. >> So early scientists in multiple cultures-- the mayans, the babylonians, the chinese-- studied eclipses and tried to understand and predict when they would occur. It turned out there was a greek by the name of thales who predicted an eclipse in 585 b.c. And this was recorded and the greek historian, herodotus, there was a big battle going on between two countries. There were the medes and the lydians, in what s now turkey. >> Hmm. >> And there was a war going on and they had lined up for battle. And they were about to do battle and suddenly there was a solar eclipse. >> Oh. >> Os, needless to say, the two generals met in the middle of the field and said, maybe we ought not to fight today. And so they drew up a peace treaty and those two countries never fought again. So just a-- >> all right. So an example of solar eclipse saving lives. >> That s right. Indeed, indeed. And so, but what happened was, a lot of these-- as people began to learn to write things down-- the babylonians on clay tablets, and the chinese court records, and the greek historians-- people began to pull together this information to understand how to predict eclipses and understand how the cycles occur. And that helped the-- that sort of spawned the whole science of astronomy. How do you-- how d the mathematics occur on these objects. >> Hmm. >> And one of the things they discovered was called the saros cycle, and this actually-- edmond halley named it the saros cycle. They didn t-- they had different names in ancient times. But what they discovered was that an eclipse will recur approximately every 6,585.3 days, which is 18 years, 11 days, and 8 hours. So it turns out that the eclipse we re about to have is part of a saros cycle that occurred-- the last one was in europe in august 11, 1999, and the next one will be in asia and the pacific one september 2nd, 2035. And it looks almost exactly the same except shifted by 8 hours around the other, 123 degrees in longitude. >> Oh. >> So these repeating cycles were how the ancients were able to predict eclipses. >> How about that. Wow. >> And it s just all the different cycles of the sun and the moon add up to this repeating cycle of eclipses. >> Interesting. >> Another thing that science that was done in ancient times was the greeks looked up at a lunar eclipse-- when we re talking about how the moon moves into the shadow of the earth. And what they discovered is when the moon is near the horizon and eclipsed the shadow of the earth is not a line, if the earth were flat. It s still round. So the greeks realized that the earth must be a sphere based on-- based on the shadow of the earth on the moon under an eclipse. >> Oh, wow. >> So that was the first scientific discovery that the earth was indeed a sphere. >> Back in the mayan-- wow, okay. >> Back in the greek times, that was. >> Oh, that was greek times. >> Yeah, it was. >> Okay, okay. Interesting. Wow! >> There s a lot of interesting history associated with eclipses. >> Absolutely. >> That-- so we ve learned a lot through history. I mean, we re talking about, yeah, the shape of the earth. We re talking about-- it stopped a battle. >> Nature of the sun, yeah. >> The nature of the sun. >> Yup. The earliest eclipse that was-- that, as far as we know, was recorded, that chinese eclipse was probably about 2000 b.c. And there was maybe the one in 2137 b.c. But, the one we re sure about was there was an eclipse recorded in the town of ugerit, or ugarit, on-- in what is now, i believe, syria. >> Hmm. >> It was may 3rd, 1375 b.c. It was recorded that the sun grew dark. >> Oh. >> So there s a number of those recorded in ancient texts and tablets. >> Okay. So, wait, so the chinese one was not recorded? It was just-- >> well, just know it s actually probably semi legendary. We re not sure. >> Got it, okay. >> But this is the one we know for sure we can date the eclipse. >> Yeah. >> And actually-- oh, that was what i was going to tell you, is we have a number of these dated eclipses-- eclipse of thales, we talked about. >> Mm-hmm. >> Eclipse in ugarit. And what happens if you just run-- if you just take your computer models and putting gravity and everything and just run the sun and moon backwards in time, it turns out the eclipse is in the wrong place. So, from that, what we ve learned is that the earth rotation very, very gradually starting to slow down. >> Hmm. >> Starting to, it s been a long time. It s mainly due to the tidal effects of the moon. It s actually dragging the earth slightly down. So it s actually in those several thousand years the earth has slowed down a little bit, a fraction of an-- a fraction of a rotation. >> Oh. >> But, keep in mind, we re talking about-- we re talking about 800,000 rotations or something like that since those times. And so, we ve-- the earth s rotation has changed just a little bit in those times. But, that s another discovery we ve made that you need that long time scale to see this very gradual slowing down of the earth s rotation. >> So, over that long period of time, you said a fraction of a day, is it like an hour? Couple of hours? >> A couple of hours i think, yeah. >> Wow. >> But, and recently, some scientists have gone back and looked at chinese records, and again, been able to fine tune that. So that s a-- that s using ancient records to fine tune some modern science, so. >> All right. Cool. Okay, so let s go to this eclipse coming up on the 21st. >> All right, do you want to talk about safety or what to expect? >> All of it. Let s do it. >> All right. All right, let s talk about-- >> however you want to start. >> Let s talk about safety a little bit. >> Okay, safety. >> Okay, everybody has heard, don t look at an eclipse, you ll go blind, right? We ve all heard that. >> Yeah. >> And i remember as a boy, puzzling and puzzling over that. What is it about an eclipse that makes it so dangerous? >> Mm-hmm. >> Well, it turns out, you don t want to stare at the sun ever. It s bad for your eyes. Your eyes are not designed to be-- handle direct sunlight for any length of time. >> I feel like it s a good general rule. >> It s a good general rule. And when our kids go outside, we say, now, kids, don t look at the sun, you ll go blind. It s true, you don t want them looking at the sun. >> Yeah, yeah. >> The reason why-- the eclipse is not any different. It s just you're more likely to stare at the sun during an eclipse because you want to see what s happening. >> Oh. >> So, this really-- there s people that think there is some sort of mysterious rays coming off the sun. The only thing is just the sun like we're normally familiar with, you just don t want to stare at it. Okay. >> Okay. >> All right, so that s the first thing. So any time the bright disk, that photosphere of the sun, any time the bright disk is visible, even just a little sliver, you really don t want to look at the sun with your unaided eye. It s dangerous. You want to keep your eye for a long -- your eyes for a long time, right? >> Yeah, i would hope so. >> But we have special-- nowadays, we have special eclipse glasses that you can get in museums and different places. >> Yeah. >> That are-- it s perfectly safe to put those on and look. By the way, don t do what i did. I was checking my eclipse glasses the other day. I looked up at the sun, i said, yeah. And i pulled the eclipse glasses off before i stopped looking at the sun, so then i had a bright blob. Just for a second, i had a bright blob in my eyes for a little while. So be careful with them. They re often made of aluminized mylar and they look-- they re kind of silvery. >> Okay. >> And also, don t put any pinholes or anything in them. That-- you want to-- you want to keep them like they are. >> Keep them-- so what are the special eclipse glasses? They have-- they re just like really intense sunglasses? Is that kind of what i think? >> Yeah, it s kind of super sunglasses. >> Okay. >> Which here s the thing, you want to avoid any homemade glasses. >> Oh. >> Don t put on multiple sunglasses or something. Don t use smoked glass, or photographic film, or neutral density filters, or anything like that. You re not sure there s enough there to block the light to make it safe. >> Okay. >> So stick with the-- with the-- with the kind that you can get. They re not very expensive and you can-- you can get them online and other places. >> Okay. >> One exception is number 14 welder s glass is safe, because that s designed also for very bright. Like the welders use. >> Oh, okay. >> All right, so that s okay. And the-- and even more important part is don t look at the sun-- don t look at the bright disk of the sun with any instruments, with telescopes or binoculars without proper filters on them, because those things actually magnify the strength of the sun. >> Ooh. They ll your-- >> and just like when i was a boy, i used to use the magnifying glass on the ants, you know? That could do that to your eye, so you need to be very, very careful. >> Yeah. >> So i would avoid-- i would avoid those, unless you have properly designed equipment. Now, don t like take your binoculars and put your sunglasses at the eyepiece, because it s so intense it could burn right through your special glasses. So there s-- be very, very careful unless you know what you re doing with binoculars and telescopes. Don t even use those. >> Right, and that s, again, that s only a two minute eclipse. >> It s only a two and a half minute at the most. >> Yeah. >> So, that s-- that little window of time during totality, after the moon has completely covered the disk of the sun-- >> mm-hmm. >> --That is the only time you can look safely without glasses. >> Okay. >> And it-- and the brightness of the-- of the eclipsed sun and the corona-- it s like the brightness of a full moon, so there s no dangerous rays. You just don t want to be staring at the sun when the sun re-emerges. So, okay. So, just good rules of thumb. >> So, when you re looking at it-- say you have the glasses on. >> Mm-hmm. >> Is there a specific amount of time that we can say is safe to have the glasses on and be looking at the moon about to cover the sun? >> Well, what s going to happen-- >> you don t want to stare at it for hours. >> No, no. Well, what you re probably looking for is as the sun-- as the very last piece of the sun starts to disappear, you ll see actually little dots that form, and those are called baily s beads. >> Hmm. >> And it s an interesting phenomena of what-- it has to do with the different brightnesses on the edge of the sun, and also the mountains on the moon. >> Mm-hmm. >> When those disappear, that s the time you can take your glasses off and-- so you don t want to be-- because that s actually tiny little pieces of the photosphere of the sun. >> Right. >> Oh, there s the other way-- if you don t have the glasses, there s some other ways you can look at-- and it s-- by the way, if you re seeing a partial eclipse, you just want to use the glasses. You don t want to look at the sun directly. >> Will you be able to see the moon partially covering the sun with the glasses? >> Yes, it ll look like a cookie with a bite taken out of it. >> How about that. That s cool. >> That s pretty cool. One method you probably heard of is a pinhole projector, and it s very easy to make. You need some opaque material, like cardboard, and you make a pinhole, and then you project onto like a white sheet of paper an image of the sun. A pinhole acts like a lens. And i think it s important, don t actually look through the pinhole with your eye. It s not intended to look inside. It s a projector. It s a little projector. >> You look at the paper. >> You look at the paper and you ll see a little image of the sun with that. And you can see the progress of the eclipse. Another method i used to do when i was in high school, is if you take a very small mirror or a large mirror with a piece of paper with a circular hole cut out, and you can reflect the image on the sun-- of the sun onto a shaded wall, and you can watch the eclipse that way. >> Oh. >> And i tell the story, i was in-- i was in history class when there was an eclipse of the sun when i was in high school, and i asked the teacher, i said, is it okay if i put this in the window and we can watch the eclipse during class time? The teacher said, okay. So we put it in the window and it put an image of the sun during the eclipse up on the ceiling. We just went along with class and you could watch the progress of the eclipse. >> All right. >> So those are-- so the mirror, there s the projector, or your glasses are the three ways to watch the eclipse. And then, the only time, again, to watch the sun-- watch the eclipse unaided is during totality, that little short period of time. >> Okay, and totality is by far the most narrow section of the u.s. >> That s right. >> So you really have to be in that spot and we-- you can go to the website eclipse2017.nasa.gov and find out exactly where that s going to be passing through. >> That s right. And it starts-- i think i started this, but it comes on the west coast. >> Oh, right. >> It arrives in oregon, it goes across oregon, idaho, wyoming, nebraska, missouri, kentucky, tennessee, south carolina. It s a nice path that goes right through the middle of the united states. >> All right. >> And it s a relatively narrow-- relatively narrow path and, of course, it s actually moving. It s a round shadow that s moving across the surface of the earth. >> Mm-hmm. >> And if you re actually anywhere in that band you will see a total eclipse. The closer you are to the center, the longer it will last. Up to a max of two and a half minutes. >> All right. >> The other thing though is the weather. >> Oh, yeah. >> Yeah. So, it turns out that what eclipse aficionados like to do is they ll look at the historical weather at that point in the u.s. At that time of year and it turns out some of the areas are more likely to have-- to have clouds than others. So it turns out, eastern oregon is a really good place. They tend to have nice clear weather at that time of year. >> Okay. >> Wyoming, nebraska, missouri, all the way to tennessee, tend to be pretty cloud free at that time of year. And then, there s another-- as it goes over the appalachians, they tend to be cloudier. And then the little section of south carolina will also have, hopefully, less clouds than other places. But again, you never know. It;s the weather. >> Yeah. Oh, yeah. >> All you can do is roll the dice and figure-- and hope that you re lucky, because if-- there have been many eclipses that people have gone-- scientists have gone specific trips to see and it s been interfered-- the weather interferes. >> Yeah, that s just-- yeah, poor luck. But that s based on data of this day over time at this place. >> That s right. How often has it been cloudy on this day at this place. >> Yeah, and so you re really rolling the dice, but playing the odds. But those based on statistical data are better off than others. >> Right. >> Very cool. Is there any particular spot during the path of totality that may be would be better? Like, for example, is it better to go to like a state park and be away from city lights or anything? Or is being in the city just as fine? >> It s just as fine. >> Okay. >> It doesn t get totality dark during an eclipse. >> Okay. >> It gets dark, but i don t think that s-- i don t think that part of it is particularly important. >> Okay. >> The main thing, it s actually much more practical, you want to be somewhere where you re close to restrooms. >> Okay. >> The eclipse itself lasts three hours and there may be a lot of traffic, so the ability to get around maybe limited. >> Ooh, yeah. >> So, just very practical things-- are you close to food> are you close to supplies? Things like that. >> Mm-hmm. >> So let s talk a little bit about what to expect. >> Yeah. >> As i said, there may be a lot of heavy traffic so you want to get to where you want to go early. >> Okay. >> And bring things that you re going to need-- your glasses-- your eclipse glasses, a camera if you re going to bring a camera, chairs, sunscreen, water, food, toilet paper, anything that you think you might need while you re on the road. >> Wow, yeah. >> I once had to evacuate here in houston during hurricane rita, and it s maybe a little bit like that and may be stuck on the road with heavy traffic if you re not careful. >> Wow! Are you talking about people stopping on the highway just to-- >> no, just talking about large numbers of people moving to see the eclipse. >> To see-- to be in the path of totality. >> If you re traveling-- for instance, i m going to be in the carolinas. >> Mm-hmm. >> And every eclipse watched on the atlantic coast is going to be headed for south carolina. >> Yeah. >> So the interstates are going to be pretty full. >> Wow. >> So just allow plenty of time. The total eclipse-- i mean, the entire eclipse lasts about three hours, so it s about an hour and a half leading up to totality and an hour and a half until the moon completely uncovers the sun. >> Okay, okay. >> But again, i-- and one of the things i thought was interesting was the eclipse veterans gave some very sage advice. They said, if this is your first eclipse, don t try to photograph it. Don t try to take telephotos of it. You ll be so worried about your camera, you ll miss the spectacular nature of the eclipse. So i think that s good advice. And so, if you re a veteran eclipse guy and you want to-- and you want to make photographs of things, that s fine. >> Yeah. >> Let the professionals do it. Just enjoy the experience. >> Yeah. >> I think that s a good idea. >> I m sure there s going to be plenty of imagery coming out from all over the u.s. >> Oh, there will. I bet there s going to be lots of selfies with people with the moon and the eclipsed sun behind them. But that s fine. >> Do you think selfies will come out, at least during totality? Maybe when it s dark enough it ll be okay. >> You may need a flash on yourself. >> Oh, okay. A flash on yourself, okay. >> A couple of suggestions to do, so a little citizen science you can do. >> Okay. >> One of them is, notice how the sky colors change. >> Hmm. >> They re very unusual colors that you don t normally see, so that s an interesting thing. Also, when there s a tree casting shadows, there are lots of little tiny holes between the leaves that act like pinhole cameras. So sometimes you can see little crescent suns during the partial eclipse on the ground. So you can look for that. It s kind of fun to take pictures of that. >> Oh, that s really cool. >> Does the temperature change? Does it feel cooler during the eclipse? Does the wind pick up or calm down during the eclipse? Just some kind of scientific things you can observe. >> Just is there-- are there things that we know of that-- what atmospheric changes in the earth? Like-- >> it will-- it does change the heating of the earth from the sun. >> Oh, it does? >> Yeah, and you will feel colder. And people actually have noticed it feels considerably cooler, which will be pleasant probably on august 21st, especially in south carolina. So just things to notice. Again, the other thing is as totality approaches observers have sometimes noticed what s called shadow bands, and these are alternating light and dark bands that quickly move across the ground, especially where you have light colored surfaces. >> Hmm. >> They occur just before totality and after totality. They re-- actually, we don t fully understand how they work. They probably have something to do with the atmosphere, the same reason the stars twinkle. But if you can see them-- sometimes they re seen, and sometimes they re not. Something to look for. >> Hmm. >> Another thing to observe is right a s the totality is beginning, there s just a tiny little sliver of the sun, and it looks very much like a diamond ring in the sky, and it s called the diamond ring effect. And that s definitely when the diamond ring occurs at the end of the eclipse. So the baily s beads-- that s the time to put your sunglasses-- your special eclipse glasses back on. >> Oh, okay. >> But, as the eclipse is about to happen you ll see the diamond ring effect, and then the diamond will go away, the baily s beads will go away, and then you ll see the full totality. And again, you can take your eclipse glasses off during totality, but be ready to put them back on. >> Yeah. >> And another thing you can look around is take a moment-- while you re enjoying the eclipse, take a moment to observe people around you. See how people react to it. >> Yeah. >> The expressions on their face. Another thing, is sometimes animals behave strangely during eclipses. >> Chicken shave been known to roost, birds behave differently. Even wasps and bees sometimes behave strangely. >> Wow. >> Cows, insect-- dogs, insects, anything you can think of that s close by, just for fun, observe and see if you notice anything. >> It is a strange and rare phenomenon to them. >> It is strange and they re confused by it. >> Yeah, yeah. >> And by the way, after totality, the whole sequence will reverse it. So you have all those sequence of things, the partial eclipse, the diamond ring, the baily s beads. >> Mm-hmm. >> And that will reverse as the moon uncovers the sun. >> Wow. Amazing. >> So if you miss this eclipse, or the weather doesn t cooperate, we have another chance in 7 years from now. >> All right. >> In 2024, there will be an eclipse that will move through texas and up through new england, and it will be another total eclipse of the sun. So we have two in a very short period of time, but it s been a long time since we ve had an eclipse. >> All right, yeah. >> So, we re due. We re due. We get two-- so, two chances, and my wife said, well, why don t we just go to the one in 7 years? And i said, well, we don t know what our lives are going to be like in 7 years. >> Yeah. >> So i said, carpe eclipsum. Seize the eclipse. So this is your chance. >> Fantastic. Yeah, no, i mean, i m-- if anything, why not both, right? >> Well, why not? We can try both. I may become an eclipse junkie, i guess. >> Yeah, yeah. No, i mean, it s so cool. And the fact that we re able to predict them, and we can go and-- we have a bunch of best practices on how you can observe the eclipse, the best that you can possibly do it. >> Yeah. >> I know, going back, just one quick thing. Well, you said early. Arrive to your destination early. >> Yeah, if you can, yes. >> How early are you-- are you talking about like days, or day, or hours? >> Well, it s difficult to arrive days early now, because virtually every hotel is booked along the eclipse path. >> Oh. >> We re going to be some distance away from the eclipse, so we re going to have to start early. The eclipse is maximum in south carolina about 2:30, so i figure if we get off at 8:00 in the morning that gives us about 6 hours to get there. And that may or may not be enough time. We ll just have to do the best we can. That was just where we-- i m staying with relatives, so that s-- >> okay. >> But, a lot of people i know have their hotel rooms booked in the-- at-- underneath the eclipse, so they can just step outside and watch it. >> Yeah, that s the-- oh, i wish i planned ahead there. That would ve been nice just get a nice, like, resort or something and just lay by the pool, watch the eclipse go by. That d be pretty cool. >> Actually, what i had originally planned-- i ve been planning for this eclipse since i was in graduate school many, many years ago. >> Wow. >> And i noticed that it would actually go through grand teton national park. And i thought, that s what i ll do. I ll go to the grand tetons and see the eclipse. But it turns out, the weather s not so-- it s a higher probability of clouds there, so i backed away from that. >> Wow. >> Good luck to those of you that-- the tetons. But that would be a beautiful photograph, actually, to see the eclipse over the grand tetons. >> Oh, absolutely. Let s keep our fingers crossed for that good weather all across the board. >> Hopefully it ll be clear all across the united states. >> Yeah. >> And everybody will be able to enjoy the eclipse. >> That would be fantastic. Well, i think that s all the time we have, unless you have one more story. But-- anything? >> I have other stories, but-- there are lots of good stories. >> Well, hey, yeah. Actually, we have a website and if you stay tuned until after the music here, we ll tell you where you can go and check out some more info on the eclipse and learn a little bit more about the history, the science, and all kinds of cool stuff, including the citizen science that mark was talking about here and how you can-- what you can do to observe some phenomena about this eclipse. So stay tuned for after the music there. Mark, thank you so much for coming on the podcast today. >> You re welcome. >> I feel like that was-- i m not going to say everything about the eclipse, because like you said, there s definitely more. But that s the-- i feel like i have a good understanding about eclipses and the science that goes behind it. So there s a lot about eclipses and a lot that we can learn just from shadows, and it s just amazing that there s so much behind it. So thanks for coming on the podcast and talking all about it. And everyone, i hope you enjoy the eclipse on the august 21st. So thanks again, mark. >> Thank you. [ Music ] >> houston, go ahead. >> I m on the space shuttle. >> Roger, zero-g and i feel fine. >> Shuttle has cleared the tower. >> We came in peace for all mankind. >> It s actually a huge honor to break the record like this. >> Not because they are easy, but because they are hard. >> Houston, welcome to space. >> Hey, thanks for sticking around. So, once again, this monday, august 21st, a total solar eclipse will sweep across america. If you want to know all the information that we have, if this podcast was not enough for you, go to eclipse2017.nasa.gov. You can find out all the science of eclipses, even more than we talked about with mark matney today, where it will be, and then how to safely view it from the ground. Just be sure to make sure that you check the glasses and make sure that they are nasa certified. After talking with mark matney after the show, we found out that the shadow itself is going to be 68 miles wide, and then that shadow travels faster than 1,000 miles per hour. So, he went back and he was trying to find the width of the shadow. It s actually a little bit smaller than you would imagine, but how fast it travels-- i mean, we re talking about some of those planes that are going to be following the shadow and studying it, they re only going to get only a few extra minutes out of it because the shadow s traveling so fast. But, if you think about it, it s the moon going around the earth, so it s probably going to be a little bit faster than you would think. Anyway, you can find out more about the eclipse by following us on social media. Obviously, our nasa accounts will be talking about this, but also here at the nasa johnson space center you can follow our accounts there. We ll be talking about it. If you follow international space station you can see some of the imagery. You ll get from there 250 miles above the earth. And then also, aries astral materials research, you ll find them on multiple accounts and you can talk-- they will be talking mostly about the science of eclipses, and they are also based here in the johnson space center. All of these are on either facebook, twitter, and instagram. If you want to join the conversation for-- and maybe submit some pictures that you are taking from wherever you re going to be observing the eclipse, and then also sort of see what everyone else is doing, the official hashtag for this event is #eclipse2017. Just use that on your favorite platform and share your experience and maybe ask a couple questions in case all of the information we told you today and anything you can t find on the website we can still answer even more questions that you have. So this podcast was recorded on july 19th, 2017. Thanks to alex perryman, john stoll, and tracy calhoun. And thanks again to dr. Mark matney for coming on the show. We ll be back next week.

AAS 228: Day 1 morning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohler, Susanna

2016-06-01

Editors Note:This week were at the 228th AAS Meeting in San Diego, CA. Along with a team ofauthors from astrobites.com, I will bewritingupdates on selectedevents at themeeting and posting twiceeach day. Follow along here or atastrobites.com, or catch ourlive-tweeted updates from the@astrobites Twitter account. The usual posting schedule for AAS Nova will resumenext week.Come visit astrobites at the AAS booth we have swag!Things kicked off last night at our undergraduate reception booth. Thanks to all of you who stopped by we were delightedto hear from undergrads who already know and love the site, educators who want to use it in their classrooms, and students who had not yet been introduced to astrobites and were excited about a new resource!For the rest of the meeting we will be stationed at theAAS booth in the exhibit hall (booth #211-213), so drop by if you want to learn more (or pick up swag: weve got lots of stickers and sunglasses)!Mondaymorning was the official start of the meeting. Here are just a few of the talks and workshops astrobiters attended this morning.Opening Address(by Susanna Kohler)AAS President Meg Urry kicked off the meeting this morning at 8am with an overview of some of the great endeavors AAS is supporting. We astrobiters had personal motivation to drag ourselves out of bed that early: during this session, Urryannounced the new partnership between AAS and astrobites!Urry touched on some difficult topics in her welcome, including yesterdays tragedy in Orlando. Shereiteratedthe AASs support fortheCommittee for Sexual-Orientation and Gender Minorities in Astronomy (SGMA). She also reminded meeting attendees about the importance ofkeeping conference interactions professional, and pointed to the meetings anti-harassment policy.Partnership Announcement (by Michael Zevin)This morning, the American Astronomical Society announced the new partnership that it will have with Astrobites! We are beyond excited to embark on this new partnership with the Society, which was the culmination of several years of supportive interaction. This new relationship is described further in the press release just issued by AAS.First plenary: The Ocean World Enceladus (by Chris Faesi)Enceladus takes its place in the lineup of potential life-bearing solar system bodies.In the first plenary session of the AAS 228th meeting, Christopher Glein of the University of Toronto took the audience on an exciting tour of the ocean world Enceladus. This small, icy moon of Saturn had been thought rather unremarkable for most of the 2+ centuries since its discovery in 1789, but theCassini spacecrafts extended visit over the last decade has revealed it to be a surprisingly dynamic and unique little world. From Cassinis 23 flybys, we now know that Enceladus is composed of roughly equal parts rock and ice, and, with analbedo of 99%, is the most reflective body in the solar system.The moons surface is not entirely cratered, as are most solar system objects such as our own Moon, but has a southern hemisphere with long fissures that look like tiger stripes on an otherwise smooth surface. Follow-up with the satellites highly sensitive instruments revealed that these stripes were heated up to 200 K much hotter than Enceladuss typical 75 K surface temperature. There seems to be an energy shortage: the heating expected from Saturns tidal influence on the moon is a factor of about ten smaller than what would be required to heat the surface this much. Unraveling this discrepancy is still an area of active study today.Learning about the chemistry of Enceladuss plumes. It always amazes me how much we can learn from light! #aas228 pic.twitter.com/yklpClPjRD astrobites (@astrobites) June 13, 2016Enceladus also spews powerful jets of salty water and water ice far into space viacryovolcanism, making it the smallest geologically active body in the solar system. Perhaps most intriguingly, this 500 km-diameter moon may be a promising target in the search for extraterrestrial life. The jets are highly alkaline and may contain molecular hydrogen, which links the inorganic and living worlds as a reactant and energy source. Although Cassinis very fruitful mission will come to a close in 2017 with a death spiral into Saturn, the future is still bright for Enceladus. Glein closed with a preview of the next mission to this special moon: ELF, the Enceladus Life Finder, will fly through and analyze Enceladuss icy plume in unprecedented detail using state-of-the-art instruments and is predicted to fly in 2031. 102: The NASA K2 Mission (by Meredith Rawls)Everyones favorite planet finding telescope continues to impress. In this morning session, we heard highlights about how the repurposed Kepler mission (K2) is contributing to research in areas ranging from nearby brown dwarfs to extragalactic supernovae. The session kicked off with an overview by Knicole Colon, who happily reported extended funding for K2 through 2018, when its fuel is projected to run out. Colon: despite a glitch in the celebratory cake, #K2mission has been extended until the end of life! #aas228 pic.twitter.com/9umZozOy0n Geert Barentsen (@GeertHub) June 13, 2016Bradley Tucker discussed recent extragalactic results from K2, and supernovae in particular. So far, the Kepler Extragalactic Survey has found 17 supernovae and they hope to find at least 20 more in the next three years. Because Kepler observations are so frequent, they reveal previously hidden subtleties in how supernovae fade over time..@btucker22: #K2mission is providing a statistical sample of high-precision supernova lightcurves! #aas228 pic.twitter.com/GWZUJhtmRW Geert Barentsen (@GeertHub) June 13, 2016Of course, exoplanet science is still a primary goal for the K2 team. Matthew Penny updated us on the status of the in-progress microlensing campaign, which uses Kepler to search for one-off brightening events that indicate the presence of a planet due to gravitational microlensing. Work is also underway by Jeffrey Coughlin and colleagues to improve our ability to automatically detect and confirm exoplanet candidates with the traditional transit technique. They have developed a robotic technique called DAVE (Discovery And Vetting of K2 Exoplanets), which does an impressive job of eliminating false positive eclipse signals. To complement K2 observations of exoplanet transits, astrobites alumna Courtney Dressing presented a method which incorporates observations from the infrared Spitzer Space Telescope to better refine planet properties such as radius. @AstroDressing: Spitzer lets us refine Kepler planet radii, orbits, and even masses in prep for the Webb. #aas228 pic.twitter.com/qAUHeUSMYa Meredith Rawls (@merrdiff) June 13, 2016One of the challenges of K2 compared to Kepler is noise introduced by the spacecrafts less precise ability to point. Derek Buzasi implored us to not consider any one pipeline that removes this jitter as necessarily best, but rather to try several and recognize that different science goals will need different approaches to data processing.There isnt one best K2 pipeline! Depends strongly on your science goals. Buzasi begs us not to rank them. #aas228 pic.twitter.com/ykl89WqKNk Meredith Rawls (@merrdiff) June 13, 2016Jeffrey Van Cleve showed examples of what can be accomplished when K2 data is appropriately processed: just like Kepler, K2 can use asteroseismology to see the ringing oscillations of acoustic waves inside evolved stars. More gorgeous asteroseismology coming out of K2! Thanks to K2P2 pipelines handling of calibrated pixels. #aas228 pic.twitter.com/dGY6DcZHlV Meredith Rawls (@merrdiff) June 13, 2016Finally, several speakers including Buzasi presented their work on stellar astrophysics with K2. In addition to stellar activity and asteroseismology, presenters discussed spots and flares on cool brown dwarfs (John Gizis) and using eclipses together with stellar models to measure distances to star clusters (Keivan Stassun). Not a bad roundup for a broken space telescope!103: Galaxies Big and Small (by Ben Cook)This session (one of the first parallel sessions of the conference) included a variety of presentations studying galaxies, primarily using observations but ending with a unique purely analytical study. Stephen McNeil began the session by discussing a survey looking for dwarf galaxies in voids the most empty spaces in the universe. Candidate objects can be looked for using a smart choice of photometric color bands, but more work is ongoing to confirm the locations of (and distances to) the objects with spectroscopy.Aaron Romanowsky gave an overview of the field of Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies, a new class of galaxies only discovered within the last 2 years. Some of these galaxies are as large as the Milky Way and seem to have almost as much dark matter, but they contain 1000x fewer stars.A high-redshift galaxy which is gravitationally lensed by a large cluster is shown to the left. The right image shows how big it would look without the magnification. [Slide by Greg Walsh]Greg Walsh presented a longer dissertation presentation on his work observing dusty star-forming galaxies. One of the best tools for this job is using galaxy clusters as gravitational lenses to help magnify very distant galaxies.Tianxing Jiang showed a variety of observations and simulations that suggest that the level star formation in a galaxy may have to do with the amount of gas pressure, and Aaron Barth showed new measurements of the masses of Super Massive Black Holes using radio measurements. Barth argues that the key to getting good (10%) accuracy is having very high spatial-resolution.Bill Forman discussed how many galaxies have extremely hot, ionized gas surrounding them, and Bruce Rout argued that dark matter may not be necessary to explain the rotation curves of galaxies; a complicated analytical model using general relativity can do the job without any dark matter at all.Press Conference: Exoplanets and Brown Dwarfs (by Susanna Kohler)The first press conference of the meeting featured four speakers discussing some of the latest developments in the field of exoplanet and brown dwarfs.Artists impression of the surface of a massive, planet-like body being devoured by a white dwarf. [A. Hara/C. Melis/W. M. Keck Observatory]First up was Carl Melis (UC San Diego), who discussed the discovery of a rocky exoplanetary body currently being shredded by a white dwarf. As the white dwarfs strong gravitational pull tears the body apart, we can observe the material pulled from its surface layers. These observations made by Keck Observatory and Hubble indicate that the body might have been Earth-like, with an outer surface of made up of limestone. Heres the press release.Next, Avi Shporer (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory) spoke about the first transiting brown dwarf found in K2 mission data. Stars like companionship, but the companions are usually other massive stars, or Jupiter-size or smaller planets. Companions with the mass and size of brown dwarfs are uncommon, leading to the term brown dwarf desert. The brown dwarf found by K2 marks the 12th transiting brown dwarf we have discovered.Jerome Orosz (San Diego State University) was up next, presenting the largest and longest-period circumbinary planet yet discovered. This planet is in an orbit with a 3-year period around a two-star binary system (think Tatooine!). This is the longest orbital period of any confirmed transiting exoplanet, and this Jupiter-sized planet, which is in the circumbinarys habitable zone, is the largest circumbinary planet weve observed. Heres the press release.Jerome Orosz on the largest and longest-period circumbinary planet found in Kepler data #aas228 #tatooine pic.twitter.com/2wngVJWEzH astrobites (@astrobites) June 13, 2016Finally, Sean Mills (University of Chicago) spoke about Kepler-108, a giant planet system in which the two exoplanets dont orbit within the same plane. This is detectable because the transits of these planets occur at different times and have different depths in the light curve each time they orbit. Their misalignment may have been caused by a past collision with another planet, which was kicked out of the system in the process. The LIGO-VIRGO Forum on Hunting Gravitational Wave Counterparts(by Gourav Khullar)This parallel session, organized by Peter Shawhan (University of Maryland, advancedLIGO) discussed the first major followup campaign of the GW150914 gravitational wave (GW) discovery event by the physics and astronomy community around the world. It was extremely exciting to hear the speakers talk of the actual process behind the mega-collaborative effort following the first GW event. This paper, published on June 3rd this year, was described by Peter, with a strong emphasis on the timeline following the GW alert in raw LIGO data back in September 2015, along with description of the sky map and raw data given to different facilities and collaborations that LIGO-VIRGO had signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with for rapid and robust followups. The talk also focussed on resources and tutorials available now to unpack and characterize future alerts data from LIGO-VIRGO. This talk was followed by the description of the all sky survey PAN-STARRS, and its joint efforts with LIGO. It was pointed out that PAN-STARRS had already scanned the sky multiple times, which gave the program an edge in determining transients, i.e. recent features appearing on their new maps but not the old. This extensive survey also allowed better characterization of the transient source, which would be the next step for PAN-STARRS and other similar projects. Our @LIGO booth at #AAS228 is up and running drop by for a chat about #gravitationalwaves pic.twitter.com/akt9wsVPT6 pic.twitter.com/kmPz3oxzJf LIGO (@LIGO) June 13, 2016Following this was a talk by Andy Howell, of the newly formed Las Cumbres Observatory A Global Telescope Network (LCOGT), made up of multiple telescopes across the US, Chile, Spain, South Africa, China and Australia. Howell emphasized that a robotic pointed-search facility could be extremely crucial in automated alert triggering of GW events in the future. Their galaxy and transient catalog is one to look out for.

hwhap_Ep16_Spacesuits

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-26

>> HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PODCAST. WELCOME TO THE OFFICIAL PODCAST OF THE NASA JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, EPISODE 16: SPACESUITS. I’M GARY JORDAN AND I’LL BE YOUR HOST TODAY. SO IF YOU’RE NEW TO THE SHOW, THIS IS WHERE WE BRING IN NASA EXPERTS-- SCIENTISTS, ENGINEERS, ASTRONAUTS-- ALL TO TELL YOU THE COOLEST PARTS ABOUT WHAT’S GOING ON HERE AT NASA. SO ALLYOOP ON TWITTER IS ASKING IF WE CAN DO AN EPISODE ON SPACESUITS. WELL, THANKS FOR YOUR SUGGESTION, ALLYOOP. LET’S DO IT! TODAY WE’RE TALKING SPACESUITS WITH LES PADILLA. HE’S THE EMU HARDWARE MANAGER AT THE NASA JOHNSON SPACE CENTER IN HOUSTON, TEXAS, AND THAT JUST MEANS HE MANAGES THE HARDWARE ON THOSE CLASSIC WHITE SPACESUITS YOU SEE WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT ASTRONAUTS. WE HAD A GREAT DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW THOSE SPACESUITS WORK, WHAT THEY’RE MADE OF, HOW THEY’VE EVOLVED OVER TIME, AND WHAT THEY’LL LOOK LIKE IN THE FUTURE. SO WITH NO FURTHER DELAY, LET’S GO LIGHT SPEED AND JUMP RIGHT AHEAD TO OUR TALK WITH MR. LES PADILLA. ENJOY. [ MUSIC ] >> T MINUS FIVE SECONDS AND COUNTING-- MARK. [ INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER ] >> HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PODCAST. [ MUSIC ] >> I LIKE TO EXPLAIN TO OTHERS, I FEEL LIKE A KID IN A CANDY STORE WHEN THEY ASK ABOUT IT. >> YEAH. >> IT’S AWESOME TO BOTH SEE THE PAST WHERE IT CAME FROM AND THE FUTURE DESIGNS WHERE WE’RE MAYBE HEADED TOWARDS. >> THAT’S RIGHT, AND THAT’S WHAT WE’RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT TODAY, ALL OF THOSE THINGS. >> ALL RIGHT. >> SO I HOPE YOU-- I SEE YOU HAVE A LARGE BINDER OF NOTES. IT’S ACTUALLY ONE PAGE. BUT YEAH, SO WE’RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT IT ALL TODAY. SO FIRST OF ALL, SPACESUITS. LET’S START FROM LIKE THE OVERARCHING, LIKE WHAT IS A SPACESUIT, WHY DO YOU NEED A SPACESUIT? I THINK THE CLOSEST THING THAT I’VE BEEN DESCRIBED IS LIKE THINK OF IT LIKE A SPACESHIP THAT’S SHAPED LIKE A HUMAN BODY. IS THAT KIND OF RIGHT? >> THAT’S A FANTASTIC DESCRIPTION RIGHT THERE. >> COOL. >> A LOT BETTER AND A LOT SHORTER THAN I COULD’VE SAID IT. >> OKAY SO WHAT ARE THEY, HOW, LIKE WHY A SPACESUIT? WHY DO WE NEED THAT? WHY CAN’T WE JUST USE THE FANCY SPACECRAFT WITH LIKE ARMS ON IT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT? >> YEAH, SO AT SOME POINT, PEOPLE BEFORE US DECIDED, “WE WANT TO GO TO SPACE.” AND AFTER THAT THEY DECIDED GOING TO SPACE WASN’T ENOUGH. WE WANT TO GO EXTRAVEHICULAR, OUTSIDE THE SPACESHIP-- WHATEVER SPACESHIP IT IS, FROM SHUTTLE TO STATION, TO BEFORE THOSE AND THE MERCURY MISSIONS ALL THE WAY IN THE EARLY DAYS. AND THE SPACESUIT, THE PURPOSE OF IT IS TO BE SORT OF AS YOU SAID, A MINIATURE AIRCRAFT, BUT ALLOW US MOBILITY, FLEXIBILITY, MANEUVERABILITY, SO THAT A CREW MEMBER COULD MOVE AROUND WHEN THEY’RE DOING WORK OR JUST EXPERIENCING THE ENVIRONMENT OUT THERE. LIKE IN THE EARLY DAYS IN GEMINI WHEN THEY WENT OUT THE DOOR. >> THAT’S RIGHT, ED WHITE. >> YEAH, ABSOLUTELY, YOU GOT IT. JUST EXPERIENCING THE ENVIRONMENT, DID NOT WANT TO COME BACK IN. >> YEAH. >> OR LATER DAYS, EVEN WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW WITH THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, WHERE THERE ARE MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES AND THERE IS-- WE’VE ALREADY COMPLETED THE ASSEMBLY, SO IT’S MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES IS WHERE WE’RE AT. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO GO OUT THERE AND DO MORE THAN JUST FLY AROUND AND ENJOY THE SCENERY. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO TURN BOLTS. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO PULL OUT LARGE BATTERIES AND PUT THEM BACK IN. AND SO THEY NEED SOMETHING THAT OFFERS DEXTERITY AND YET PROTECTION FROM THE VERY HARSH SPACE ENVIRONMENT. >> YOU KNOW, WE JUST SAW THAT, BECAUSE WE JUST DID THE SPACEWALK THE OTHER DAY, RIGHT. THAT WAS THE SECOND OF THREE PLANNED ONES, AND THAT WAS WHEN THEY WERE PUTTING ON SOME OF THE SHIELDS AND EVERYTHING. >> ABSOLUTELY. >> AND THEY DID SOME ROBOTIC WORK, RIGHT, WITH THE STATION’S ROBOTIC ARM. THEY TOOK THE PRESSURIZED MATING ADAPTOR, MOVED IT TO A NEW PLACE, BUT THEY NEEDED HUMAN HANDS TO ACTUALLY CONNECT THE CABLES AND ACTUALLY PUT ON THE SHIELDS. SO IT MAKES SENSE, RIGHT-- YOU NEED THE SUITS BECAUSE THERE’S SOME THINGS THAT ROBOTS JUST CAN’T DO, I GUESS, RIGHT? >> YEAH, NOT YET, NOT WHERE WE ARE TODAY. YOU CAN’T GO TO SPACE WITHOUT EVA. >> YEAH, THAT’S TRUE. OKAY, SO LIKE GOING BACK TO ED WHITE AND GEMINI, THAT WAS-- THE FIRST ONE WAS-- OH, NO, I HAD-- I JUST HAD IT. I WANT TO SAY JUNE 1965? ‘65, THERE IT IS. ALL RIGHT, YEAH. HE CAME OUT AND THEY ACTUALLY USED THE AIR GUN TO MOVE AROUND. AND SUPER FAMOUS VIDEO OF WATCHING HIM JUST LIKE DRIFT OUT, AND HE’S GOT THE UMBILICAL, AND HE’S GOT THE AIR. SO I’VE GOT TO ASK-- WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THAT AIR GUN THINGY? AND THEN WHY DO WE NOT SEE ANYONE USE THOSE ANYMORE? >> YEAH, GREAT QUESTION, YEAH. AND SO THERE’S PROBABLY PEOPLE WISER AND MORE EXPERIENCED THAT HAVE EXTRA DETAILS ON THAT, BUT AT A HIGH, GENERAL LEVEL IT’S JUST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. SO YOU’RE OUT THERE IN SPACE. WE CALL IT-- WE SAY NO GRAVITY. THERE IS SOME GRAVITY, BUT IT’S MICROGRAVITY, VERY LOW, AND FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES YOU’RE FREEFALLING TOWARDS THE EARTH. AND SO UNLESS YOU’RE HOLDING ONTO A HANDRAIL OR THE VEHICLE ITSELF, YOU WILL CONTINUE TO FLOAT, AND THE GRAVITATIONAL PULL TO THE SURFACE OF EARTH WILL BEGIN TO BRING YOU DOWN. SO AS SOON AS YOU GO OUT THAT DOOR, YOU’VE GOT TO HAVE A WAY-- IT COULD BE A TETHER OR A ROPE TO PULL YOU BACK IN, BUT A WAY TO MANEUVER AROUND THE AREA YOU WANT TO GO. AND SO THE AIR GUN PROVIDES A SMALL PROPULSION CAPABILITY TO NAVIGATE. >> OKAY, MAKES A LOT OF SENSE. SO, OKAY, THEY’RE GOING OUT AND USING THE AIR GUN, BUT NOW I GUESS THEY HAVE-- IT TOOK THEM A WHILE, RIGHT, DURING THE GEMINI? THAT WAS KIND OF A LOT OF THE POINT OF THE GEMINI PROGRAM, WAS TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO STUFF LIKE THIS, HOW TO DO SPACE RENDEZVOUS, AND HOW TO DO SPACEWALKS. IT TOOK THEM A WHILE, RIGHT? SO THAT WAS GEMINI 4 WAS WHEN ED WHITE CAME OUT. AND THEN IT WASN’T UNTIL GEMINI 12, BUZZ ALDRIN HAD PUT IN SOME PROCEDURES FOR NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LABORATORY TRAINING, WHERE THEY ACTUALLY TRAIN IN THE WATER TO SEE HOW THEY CAN MOVE AROUND, BECAUSE EVERYONE WAS GETTING SORT OF TIRED WHEN THEY WERE GOING OUT BECAUSE THEY DIDN’T HAVE THE PROCEDURES YET. AND THEY FINALLY NAILED IT FOR GEMINI 12, RIGHT? >> YES. SPACEWALKS ARE TOUGH, TOUGH JOBS. >> YEAH. >> THE ASTRONAUTS ARE JUST AMAZING THE WAY THEY DO WORK SO SEAMLESSLY. AND AS TRAINED PROFESSIONALS, THEY MAKE IT SEEM EASY, BUT INSIDE THOSE SUITS-- BECAUSE I’VE SEEN THE SUITS COME OUT-- THERE’S A LOT OF SWEAT IN THERE. THERE’S A LOT OF HARD WORK THAT GOES ON FOR THOSE ASTRONAUTS, AND IT IS NOT EASY. AND AS YOU SAID, TRAINING ON THE GROUND IS PIVOTAL TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THOSE ACTIVITIES LOOK SEAMLESS ON ORBIT. >> YEAH, I’M TOTALLY NOT FOLLOWING THE SCRIPT RIGHT NOW, BUT I MEAN, SO THE NBL TRAINING THAT THEY DO, THEY DO IT IN THE NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LABORATORY-- SUPER BIG POOL. THEY HAVE LIKE 1-TO-1 SCALE MOCKUPS OF THE OUTSIDE OF THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, SO WHEN THEY ACTUALLY GO UP THERE AND THEY-- WELL, IN THE NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LABORATORY, THEY TRAIN IN A SPACESUIT, PRETTY MUCH. SO THEY KNOW EXACTLY HOW IT FEELS, AND WHERE THINGS ARE, AND THEY KNOW HOW TO MOVE FROM PLACE TO PLACE AND USE PROPER TOOLS. BECAUSE ONCE YOU’RE OUT THERE, YOU’VE GOT TO KNOW KIND OF WHAT YOU’RE DOING AND WHAT TO EXPECT, BECAUSE YOU MIGHT ENCOUNTER SOME HURDLES. AND THERE HAVE BEEN SOME HURDLES IN THE PAST. >> THERE HAVE BEEN, ABSOLUTELY. ALL IN THAT NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LAB, YOU’RE RIGHT. THEY ACTUALLY TRAIN IN A SPACESUIT THAT IS ALMOST EXACTLY LIKE THE ONES THEY FLY IN. SMALL LITTLE DIFFERENCES, LIKE THE WHITE BACKPACK, WHICH IS THE ENGINE OF THE SPACESUIT, THE PRIMARY LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEM. IN THE NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LAB, IT IS JUST A HOLLOW SHELL AND WE HAVE UMBILICALS, LONG HOSES, THAT SUPPLY THE AIR AND THE POWER TO THE SUIT. >> RIGHT. >> AND THE TOOLS WILL HAVE THINGS THAT ARE CHANGED ON THEM TO MAKE THEM MORE NEUTRAL BUOYANT, SO THEY’LL FLOAT IN WATER AND DON’T SINK DIRECTLY DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THE POOL. BUT OVERALL, IT IS, AS YOU POINTED OUT, JUST LIKE THE FLIGHT HARDWARE, AND THE SUITS ARE VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT THEY USE ON ORBIT SO THEY CAN TRAIN AND BE PREPARED. BECAUSE AS YOU NOTED, THERE IS NO GO OUT THE DOOR AND, “I’M NOT QUITE SURE WHAT I’M DOING OUT HERE. LET’S GO AHEAD AND PLAN ANOTHER DAY.” >> “LET’S FIGURE IT OUT. OH, WE CAN’T DO IT. I GUESS WE’LL COME OUT AGAIN.” BECAUSE YEAH, IT TAKES A LONG TIME, RIGHT? BECAUSE I MEAN, I WAS LISTENING TO SHANE THE OTHER DAY, BECAUSE HE JUST LANDED A COUPLE DAYS AGO AT THE TIME OF THIS RECORDING, AND HE WAS SAYING IT TAKES HOURS OF PREP WORK BEFOREHAND, RIGHT, LIKE FOUR HOURS. THEY’VE GOT TO PRE-BREATHE, THEY’VE GOT TO DO ALL THESE THINGS, PUT ON THE SUIT, AND THEN THEY GO OUT AND IT’S ANOTHER SEVEN-ISH HOURS THAT THEY’RE OUT THERE. THEN THEY COME BACK AND THEY HAVE LIKE A TWO-HOUR DEBRIEF. I MEAN, THAT’S A LONG DAY. HE CALLED IT ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING-- ESPECIALLY PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY-- CHALLENGING THINGS ABOUT FLYING IN SPACE. >> YEAH. >> I CAN IMAGINE. AND ESPECIALLY-- I MEAN, THAT’S WHAT THEY TRAIN FOR, RIGHT? >> THAT’S RIGHT. >> IN THE NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LABORATORY THEY DO LIKE SIX-HOUR RUNS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. KIND OF THE SAME, THEY DO SOME PREP WORK BEFOREHAND. BUT THEY GET USED TO IT, AND THEY DO A LOT OF THAT TRAINING. >> SO I’VE NEVER BEEN, OBVIOUSLY, OUT THE DOOR IN SPACE. I’VE NEVER BEEN AN ASTRONAUT IN THAT ASPECT, BUT GARY, ONE OF THE BEST WAYS THAT I CAN DESCRIBE WHAT YOU JUST SAID IS HAVE YOU EVER GONE SKYDIVING? >> I HAVE, ONE TIME! >> YES, THEN YOU KNOW! SO THE STIMULI WHEN YOU MAKE THAT DECISION OF “ALL RIGHT, I’M ABOUT TO GET OUT OF A PERFECTLY GOOD AIRPLANE,” AND YOU GO OUT, JUST EVERYTHING GOING ON. IT IS-- THE FIRST TIME YOU GO, IT’S VERY HARD TO CONCENTRATE. >> OH, YEAH. >> IT’S KIND OF GOOD WITH THAT TANDEM THING, THE GUY GOING, “LOOK AT YOUR ALTIMETER.” [ LAUGHTER [ BUT IMAGINE FREEFALLING LIKE THAT FOR SEVEN HOURS STRAIGHT WHILE HAVING TO DO MAINTENANCE WORK ON THE SPACE STATION AND WATCH YOUR DISPLAY CONTROL MODULE ON YOUR EMU AND LISTEN TO PEOPLE ON THE GROUND AND INSIDE THE STATION. AND THAT’S JUST A SHADOW OF THE DIFFICULTY OF THE JOB THAT THOSE GUYS DO. >> OKAY, WELL, WHEN I WENT OUT THE DOOR FOR WHENEVER I WENT SKY DIVING, MY LEGS WENT WEAK AND I ALWAYS HAD THE GUY STRAPPED TO MY BACK, AND HE HAD TO LIKE PUSH FORWARD TO THE END OF THE DOOR AND ACTUALLY LIKE PUSH ME OUT. HE DID THE WHOLE LIKE INSTEAD OF “WE’RE GOING TO GO OUT ON THREE. ONE, TWO,” AND THEN WE WENT OUT. SO I WAS LIKE-- I WAS TOTALLY WEAK, BUT I CAN’T EVEN IMAGINE. BECAUSE MY HEART DROPPED ON THAT FIRST RUN, AND THEN IT WAS THRILLING FOR A WHILE. BUT I MEAN, EVERYTHING HAPPENED SO FAST. AND NOW LIKE YOU SAID, TAKE THAT AND THEN STRETCH IT OVER A SUPER LONG PERIOD. I CAN ONLY IMAGINE. OKAY, SO LET’S TAKE A STEP BACK AND LET’S GO BACK TO KIND OF WHERE I WAS ORIGINALLY SUPPOSED TO GO, BUT TALKING ABOUT SPACESUITS, AND FIRST OF ALL, WHY DO WE NEED IT? >> SURE. >> YOU KNOW, YOU NEED THE DEXTERITY, OBVIOUSLY, BUT THERE’S A HUMAN ASPECT TO THAT, RIGHT? YOU CAN’T JUST, “OH, YOU KNOW WHAT, SOMETHING’S BROKEN ON THE OUTSIDE. LET’S JUST GO OUT THE HATCH AND TORQUE IT--” TORQUE IT, WHAT AM I SAYING? “TORQUE IT WITH A WRENCH OR SOMETHING AND FIX IT.” YOU NEED, LIKE YOU SAID, YOU HINTED AT LIFE SUPPORT A WHILE BACK WITH THE BACKPACK. SO WHAT’S IT ABOUT-- THIS MAY SEEM A BIT OBVIOUS OF A QUESTION, BUT WHAT’S IT ABOUT SPACE THAT THE HUMAN BODY CANNOT JUST GO OUT AND DO TASKS IN? >> SURE, AND YOU KNOW, I THINK MOST PEOPLE COULD TELL YOU THAT SPACE, YEAH, IT’S A DANGEROUS ENVIRONMENT. BUT WHY IS IT IS WE’RE GETTING AT-- WELL, THE SPACESUIT PROVIDES THE CAPABILITY TO REGULATE TEMPERATURE. IN THE LOW EARTH ORBIT, AS WE CALL IT, WHERE THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION IS, TEMPERATURE RANGES DURING THE EVA DAYS CAN SWING FROM NEGATIVE 148 DEGREES-- SO THAT’S 148 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT BELOW ZERO UP TO 248 DEGREES. AND THOSE ARE ESTIMATES THAT CAN BE HIGHER OR LOWER, BUT THAT’S A HUGE WINDOW THAT THE HUMAN ANATOMY WAS NOT DESIGNED TO WORK WITHIN WITHOUT PROTECTION. >> YEAH, I FEEL LIKE HOUSTON, TEXAS CAN GET UP TO ABOUT POSITIVE 248 DEGREES, BUT-- I KNOW IT’S NOT EVEN CLOSE, BUT-- >> NOT NEGATIVE 148, THOUGH. >> NO, NOT EVEN-- NO, NOT EVEN 148 TO ME. BUT YOU’RE RIGHT, THAT’S INTENSE. SO HOW DOES THE SPACESUIT PROTECT FROM THAT, THE EXTREME NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE TEMPERATURES? >> YEAH, SO THERE’S A LOT OF PLANNING UP FRONT IN CHOOSING DAYS THAT WE GO EVAs, WE CALL IT-- EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIVITIES. >> THANK YOU. >> SPACEWALKS. >> WE TRY TO STAY AWAY FROM THOSE ACRONYMS, BUT YES, SPACEWALKS, RIGHT. >> WE CHOOSE SPECIAL DAYS THAT HAVE THE LEAST IMPACT-- MORE HABITABLE CONDITIONS WOULD BE A BETTER WAY TO PUT IT. BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, EVEN ON THE BEST DAYS, TEMPERATURE SWINGS WHEN THE SUN’S LOOKING AT YOU TO WHEN THE SUN’S BEHIND THE STATION ARE LARGE SWINGS THAT CAN BE 100 DEGREES. AND SO THAT’S WHERE THE SPACESUIT COMES INTO PLAY. AND THE SPACESUIT WAS DESIGNED TO WORK IN THESE ENVIRONMENTS. THERE ARE-- THE OUTER LAYER IS WHITE BECAUSE IT REFLECTS HEAT. >> AH. >> LITTLE SIMPLE THINGS LIKE THAT. >> OKAY, NOW YOU KNOW WHY THE SPACESUITS ARE WHITE. >> THERE YOU GO. ALL RIGHT, WHEREAS IF IT WERE BLACK IT WOULD ABSORB THE HEAT, GET A LOT HOTTER QUICKER, AND MAKE IT HARD FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF THE SUIT AND THE INDIVIDUAL INSIDE. THE MULTIPLE INSULATION LAYERS ON THE SUIT ITSELF-- THERE ARE SEVEN LAYERS OF INSULATION WITHIN THE OUTER LAYER OF THE SPACESUIT. >> OH. >> AND WITHOUT GETTING INTO DETAILS, THOSE ARE SPECIFICALLY TO REFLECT HEAT AND TO PROTECT THE CREW MEMBERS, AND KEEP IN THE PROPER ENVIRONMENT HEAT THAT’S NECESSARY INSIDE THE SUIT. >> OKAY. >> SO IT MAY BE HOT OUT THERE, BUT WHEN THAT SUN GOES BEHIND STATION, IT GETS VERY COLD. THAT CREW MEMBER WANTS A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF HEAT KEPT WITHIN THAT SPACESUIT. >> I WOULD THINK SO, YEAH. >> ABSOLUTELY, ABSOLUTELY. >> NEGATIVE 148 IS PRETTY COLD. >> BUT LOWER LEVELS OF THAT SPACESUIT IS THE BLADDER ITSELF, AND THAT GETS INTO ONE OF THE NEXT IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF THE SUIT, WHICH IS PROVIDING AN OXYGEN ENVIRONMENT. >> RIGHT. >> YOU’VE GOT TO BE ABLE TO BREATHE IN SPACE, AND THERE IS A 100% OXYGEN ENVIRONMENT INSIDE THE SUIT. AND AS GARY KNOWS, AND WE’VE TALKED ABOUT IT BRIEFLY BEFORE, 100% OXYGEN ENVIRONMENT IS NOT NATURAL. >> RIGHT. >> IT’S NOT WHAT WE EXPERIENCE DOWN HERE IN AMBIENT OR ONE ATMOSPHERE PRESSURE, WHERE WE GET-- WHAT IS IT, 78% NITROGEN? >> NITROGEN, YEAH, AND A LITTLE BIT OF CARBON DIOXIDE, JUST LITTLE BIT. >> JUST A TINY BIT, TINY BIT. BUT WHEN THE LOWER PRESSURES OF THE SUIT, THE SUIT PRESSURE IS 4.3 PSI WHEN WE GO ON SPACEWALKS. >> AND THAT’S ABOUT THE PRESSURE WE FEEL HERE ON EARTH? >> THE PRESSURE WE FEEL HERE ON EARTH IS 14.7. >> WHOA, OKAY, SO A LITTLE BIT LOWER. >> SO ALMOST A THIRD, A THIRD. >> WOW. >> CLOSE TO A THIRD, A FOURTH OF THAT. >> OKAY, SO WHAT WOULD THAT FEEL LIKE? WHAT’S THE NEXT COMPARABLE THING OF WHAT 4 PSI WOULD FEEL LIKE TO LIKE US HERE ON EARTH? >> OOH, THAT’S A TOUGH ONE. >> YEAH, HARD TO COMPARE, RIGHT? >> THAT’S A TOUGH ONE, BECAUSE I’VE BEEN INSIDE OF A SUIT SO I KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE, BUT I HAVEN’T BEEN INSIDE SOMETHING ELSE THAT HAS THAT 4 PSI OF PRESSURE THAT I COULD DO A 1-TO-1 COMPARISON OF. I WOULD SAY PUTTING MULTIPLE GLOVES ON. >> OH, OKAY. YEAH, SO IT’S REALLY STRENUOUS ON YOUR HANDS, THEN? >> ABSOLUTELY. WHEN YOU’RE OUT-- COMPARED TO A NEAR ZERO PRESSURE ENVIRONMENT LIKE THE SPACE IS, 4.3 IS-- IT’S FATIGUING. YOU’VE GOT PRESSURE ON YOUR HANDS, YOUR BODY. TO MOVE, YOU’VE GOT 4.3 POUNDS OF PRESSURE OVER ALL OF YOUR BODY THAT YOU’RE WORKING AGAINST. >> PRETTY STIFF. >> THAT IS. COMPARE THAT TO THE RUSSIAN ORLAN. THEIR SUIT IS 5.8 PSI. THAT’S EVEN MORE DIFFICULT. >> WOW. >> YOU COMPARE THAT TO SOME OTHER SPACESUITS THAT WE’VE LOOKED AT IN THE PAST THAT ARE EVEN HIGHER PRESSURE, AND YOU CAN SEE WHY IT GETS-- WE NEED LOW PSI. AND SO 4.3 IS NOT PERFECT WITH ZERO RESISTANCE, BUT IT’S A NICE SWEET SPOT THAT OUR CREW MEMBERS ARE ABLE TO WORK, AND THOSE THAT HAVE RAN IN BOTH THE RUSSIAN SUIT AND THE AMERICAN SPACESUIT HAVE SAID, “YEAH, IT’S A LOT EASIER, THIS 4.3 PSI.” >> OKAY. >> YEAH. BUT THAT DRIVES US TO WHY THE OXYGEN’S AT 100%. AT THAT LOWER PRESSURE, WE NEED THE 100% OXYGEN. >> OH, OKAY. SO THAT’S HOW YOU COUNTER, YOU KNOW, WE’RE IN THE 14-SOMETHING PSI HERE, SO THEN-- >> LOWER OXYGEN CONCENTRATION. >> LOWER OXYGEN, OKAY. THAT MAKES-- AND THAT BRINGS US BACK TO THE PRE-BREATHING THAT WE KIND OF ALLUDED TO EARLIER. >> YES, SIR. >> YOU NEED TO KIND OF PURGE YOUR BODY OF NITROGEN, IS THAT RIGHT? >> THAT’S RIGHT. >> OKAY. >> THAT’S RIGHT, OTHERWISE THE OXYGEN TOXICITY IS THE CONCERN IF YOU DON’T GO TO THAT PREBREATHE PROTOCOL. >> OKAY, ALL RIGHT. WELL, AWESOME. THAT EXPLAINS WHY YOU NEED THE PRESSURE THAT YOU DO. OKAY. BUT I GUESS IF YOU WERE TO DROP IT ANY LOWER IT WOULD BE A LITTLE BIT HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH, RIGHT? LIKE 4.3 IS PROBABLY THE SWEET SPOT? >> 4.3 IS THE SWEET SPOT WITH WHAT OUR CURRENT SPACESUIT IS CERTIFIED TO. >> OH. >> YOU CAN ADJUST IT DIFFERENT WAYS. I MEAN, IT’S KIND OF LIKE IF YOU CHANGE THE PRESSURE, NOW YOU’VE GOT TO PLAY WITH THE OXYGEN. YOU’VE GOT TO PLAY WITH WHAT IS THE SUIT CAPABILITIES AT THAT LEVEL. 4.3 IS THE PERFECT SWEET SPOT FOR WHAT THIS SUIT IS CERTIFIED FOR. >> AH, I SEE. WHICH IS DOING WORK ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION. >> ABSOLUTELY. >> COOL, VERY COOL. SO YOU’RE OUTSIDE-- YOU ALLUDED TO THE FACT THAT WE’RE IN LOW EARTH ORBIT, RIGHT, MEANS WE’RE IN THE MICROGRAVITY ENVIRONMENT. >> YES. >> TINY BIT OF GRAVITY, NOT TOO MUCH. IS IT FAIR TO SAY A LITTLE BIT OF ATMOSPHERE, TOO? LIKE TINY, TINY BIT? >> TINY BIT. >> YEAH, THAT’S WHY WE NEED TO BOOST THE STATION EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE. >> YES. >> THERE’S LIKE A TINY LITTLE BIT OF DRAG. BUT HOW MUCH ARE WE PROTECTED FROM THE EARTH’S, I GUESS, MAGNETIC SPHERE? HOW MUCH DO WE HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT RADIATION AT THAT ALTITUDE? >> YEAH, NO, ABSOLUTELY. GREAT QUESTION. AND IT’S A GREAT CONCERN. THERE’S A REASON THAT CREW MEMBERS ARE LIMITED FOR HOW LONG THEY CAN STAY UP ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION. THAT’S ONE OF THE PLAYERS IN THERE IS THE HEALTH THEMSELF. RADIATION, I MEAN, I GUESS THE MOST HIGH LEVEL WAY TO DESCRIBE IT IS SUBATOMIC PARTICLES THAT ARE SUPERCHARGED WE GET FROM THE SUN, WE GET FROM OUTSIDE OUR MILKY WAY GALAXY, AND THAT CAN COME IN, AND THEY JUST TEAR RIGHT THROUGH YOUR DNA. AND THAT CAN BE ACUTE IF THERE’S LARGE DOSES OF RADIATION, WHICH FORTUNATELY AREN’T A CONCERN WHERE WE WORK IN LOW EARTH ORBIT. >> OH. >> BUT OVER A LONG-TERM EXPOSURE, THERE COULD BE CHRONIC EFFECTS. LIKE WHEN YOU REARRANGE THE DNA, IT CAN LEAD TO CANCER, OTHER DISEASES. SO IT’S VERY SERIOUS. WE HAVE A TEAM DEDICATED TO RADIATION AND MAKING SURE WE PROTECT OUR CREW MEMBERS. THE SPACESUIT IS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE SOME LEVEL OF PROTECTION WHEN THEY’RE OUT THERE FOR THAT LIMITED SPACEWALK ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION. THE SPACE STATION ITSELF IS ALSO DESIGNED TO PROTECT THE CREW MEMBERS FROM CERTAIN LEVELS OF RADIATION THAT WE GET FROM SOLAR WIND FROM THE SUN. >> OKAY, ALL RIGHT, YEAH. SO I GUESS THE SUIT IS DESIGNED FOR WHAT-- FOR THAT PURPOSE. >> FOR THAT PURPOSE IN LIMITED SPACEWALKS, YEAH. >> OKAY. WELL, SO HOW IS THAT DIFFERENT FROM OTHER I GUESS EXTRAVEHICULAR SUITS? YOU KNOW, THE SUIT ITSELF HAS EVOLVED OVER TIME, RIGHT? BUT I HEARD, I THINK THE TECHNOLOGY IS SORT OF ADAPTED FROM 1970s TECHNOLOGY, AND THEN THEY JUST MADE IT A LITTLE BIT BETTER, RIGHT? >> SURE, SURE. >> YEAH. >> YEAH, SO YOU HAVE-- I MEAN, WE CAN GO RIGHT THROUGH THEM. YOU HAVE ALL THE WAY BACK FROM THE MERCURY SUITS, THE FIRST ONES WE WENT UP THERE WITH INSIDE OF THE MERCURY, AND THOSE WERE COMPLETELY DESIGNED FOR, HEY, THE CREW MEMBER IS STAYING INSIDE THIS VEHICLE. BUT IN CAS WE HAVE CABIN DEPRESSURIZATION, WE NEED THE GUYS TO HAVE A SUIT SO THAT THEY CAN EXIST FOR HOPEFULLY THE PERIOD OF TIME TO GET THE CABIN BACK PRESSURIZED. THOSE WERE EARLY SUITS. WE HAD EVEN BEFORE THAT PRESSURIZED SUITS FOR OUR PILOTS AND BALLOONISTS THAT WERE GOING HIGH ALTITUDE. >> RIGHT, YEAH, AND WE STILL DO, RIGHT? WE HAVE THE PILOTS OVER AT ELLINGTON FIELD HERE IN TEXAS THAT WEAR THOSE PRESSURIZED SUITS FOR THE WB-57s, THOSE HIGH ALTITUDE PLANES. >> YEP, YEP. >> SO THEY’RE, I GUESS-- ARE THEY TECHNICALLY IN SPACE AT THAT ALTITUDE? I THINK THEY ARE, RIGHT? IS IT 16 MILES THAT IS LIKE YOU’RE TECHNICALLY IN SPACE? >> YOU’RE GETTING BEYOND MY KNOWLEDGE HERE. >> I DON’T WANT TO GET LOST. SO MAYBE-- LISTEN-- >> YOU HEAR THINGS, BUT YEAH. BUT I KNOW THEY DO WEAR THE SUITS, AND THEY HAVE TO. THEY HAVE TO DO THE WHOLE SAME THING THAT ASTRONAUTS DO. THEY HAVE TO PREBREATHE AND ALL OF THAT KIND OF STUFF. BUT YEAH, SO-- >> THAT’S WHERE SPACESUITS STARTED FROM. >> RIGHT. >> THAT WAS THE FIRST STEPPING STONE, WAS HIGH ALTITUDE FLYING. >> YEAH. SO I GUESS THOSE MERCURY SUITS THAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT, IS THAT WHERE KIND OF THE LAUNCH AND ENTRY SUITS KIND OF WENT TOWARDS? WHENEVER YOU’RE LAUNCHING INTO SPACECRAFT, YOU HAVE TO WEAR A SPECIFIC SUIT IN CASE OF THAT, RIGHT, SUDDEN DEPRESSURIZATION? IS THAT LIKE THE REASON? >> SO ABSOLUTELY, THE MERCURY SUIT WAS A-- YOU KNOW, WE STAND ON THE SHOULDERS OF THOSE WHO DESIGNED THAT MERCURY SUIT. AND HE NEXT SUIT WAS GEMINI AFTER THAT, AND THE NEXT ONE AFTER THAT, AND ALL THE DAY TO APOLLO-- YES, ABSOLUTELY DO THOSE PROVIDE DATA AND INSIGHT TOWARDS THE ACES SUIT, OR THE LAUNCH AND ENTRY SUIT THAT WE’RE NOW WORKING ON FOR NEXT VEHICLES. >> OH, RIGHT. >> SO YES, DATA FROM THOSE SUITS WAS PIVOTAL TO MAKE OUR CURRENT LAUNCH AND ENTRY SUITS. I MEAN, ONE OF THE MOST-- THE GEMINI SUIT THAT CAME AFTER THE MERCURY, THAT WAS THE ONE THAT ED WHITE WENT OUT ON HIS EVA IN. THAT WAS THE MOST POLARIZING OR ONE OF THE MOST WELL KNOWN ONES THAT YOU’LL SEE IN A LOT OF THE OLD MOVIES WITH THE ALUMINIZED NYLON OUTER COVERING, WHERE IT’S ALL SHINY, AND A LOT OF ZIPPERS HERE AND THERE. >> CHROME. >> YEAH. EVERY MOVIE THAT EVER HAD SCIENCE FICTION LAID TO IT-- MY PARENTS WATCHED-- I REMEMBER SEEING THE SHINY SUITS. >> YEAH. >> AND SO THAT’S GEMINI. >> YEAH. >> TO SET THE TONE ON THAT. AND THE REASON FOR THE SHINY SUITS WAS THEY WERE IN THAT TIME-- WE HAD A LOT OF DATA, BUT THE BIG CONCERNS WERE THERMAL AND RADIATION, AS WE WERE TALKING ABOUT EARLIER. AND SO YOU’LL SEE THAT ALUMINIZED MATERIAL ON THE GEMINI SUIT EARLY ON, BECAUSE THEY REALLY WANT TO MAKE SURE THEY ARE GUYS WHO PROTECTED, SO THEY WENT ALL OUT. AS WE GOT MORE DATA AND WE FIGURED OUT WHAT WE NEEDED AND WHERE WE NEED TO GROW IN, AND WHERE WE DIDN’T NEED SO MUCH, YOU SAW THAT SHINY ALUMINUM OR NYLON, IT WENT AWAY. >> RIGHT, YEAH. AND NOW WE SEE THE WHITE SUIT. >> YOU GOT IT. >> ALL RIGHT, YEAH. AND THEN WE SAW THE FAMOUS WHITE ONES LIKE ON THE MOON, WALKING ON THE SURFACE OF THE MOON. >> THE APOLLO SUITS. >> THE APOLLO SUITS. AND THEN WE-- NOW WE HAVE THE WHITE SUITS ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION THAT WE USE ALL THE TIME. SO KIND OF GOING THROUGH A LITTLE BIT OF THE FEATURES OF THOSE SUITS, I WANT TO-- I ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW, WHENEVER YOU LOOK AT A SPACESUIT, THE FIRST THING, I THINK, YOUR EYES GO TO IS THAT SHIELD, THAT GOLD SHIELD. WHAT IS THAT? >> YEAH, SO THE-- I THINK THE TERM IS GOLDIZED. >> OOH. >> YES. >> I LIKE THAT. >> THAT GOLD VISOR IS LIKE BASICALLY VERY FANCY SUNGLASSES. >> COOL. >> SO THE VISOR ITSELF IF A LEXAN MATERIAL THAT YOU’LL FIND IN SOME OF YOUR HOUSEHOLD GOODS. IT IS SPECIFICALLY TO PROTECT THE CREW MEMBERS’ EYES FROM SUN. >> OKAY. >> AND SO THERE’S A GOLD SHEET THAT GOES OVER THAT. IT HAS GREAT CHARACTERISTICS OF BLOCKING HARMFUL UV RAYS AND OTHER RAYS THAT WOULD COME FROM THE SUN, AND HELP THE ASTRONAUT CONTINUE TO BE ABLE TO WORK IN THAT SPACEWALK ENVIRONMENT. >> BUT THEY CAN KIND OF PULL IT UP, RIGHT, DURING NIGHTTIMES. IT’S LIKE SUNGLASSES ARE. IF YOU WALK FROM OUTSIDE TO INSIDE AND IT’S SUDDENLY DARK, YOU TAKE YOUR SUNGLASSES OFF. SO IT’S KIND OF-- >> SURE, THEY’VE GOT A COOL KNOB ON THE SIDE OF THE HELMET. YOU JUST FLIP THAT VISOR UP, AND WHAT YOU REALLY NEAT IS THERE ARE OPAQUE VISORS ON THE SIDE THAT WE RARELY SEE IN PICTURES. >> RIGHT. >> MOST PICTURES YOU WANT TO SEE THE FACE OR AT LEAST THE COOL GOLD VISOR. BUT THERE ARE COMPLETELY OPAQUE WHITE VISORS THAT CAN COVER-- MAYBE IF THE SUN’S ON YOUR RIGHT SIDE, IT CAN BLOCK ON THE RIGHT, OR THE LEFT, OR HALFWAY DOWN THE FRONT. AND THEN THE GOLD VISOR, AS YOU POINTED OUT, CAN COMPLETELY COVER YOUR FACE AT FULL SUN, OR PARTIALLY, OR JUST COMPLETELY REMOVE IT ALL TOGETHER. SLIDES BACK BEHIND THE HELMET BUBBLE UNDERNEATH. OH, OKAY. OH, SO I’M THINKING ABOUT THE PICTURE OF-- I WANT TO SAY IT’S ON APOLLO 17, RIGHT, WHERE YOU HAVE THE-- I THINK IT WAS GENE CERNAN, I THINK, POSING, AND THEN HE HAS TWO OF THOSE OPAQUE VISORS DOWN-- >> AH, NOW I’M WITH YOU, YEAH. >> YEAH, AND HE’S GOT THE EARTH BEHIND HIM OR SOMETHING. >> YOU GOT IT, YOU GOT IT. >> I’M THINKING ABOUT THAT PICTURE RIGHT NOW. SO IF YOU DON’T KNOW THAT PICTURE, GO LOOK THAT ONE UP, BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT HE’S TALKING ABOUT WITH THESE OPAQUE VISORS. IT’S LIKE THOSE WHITE SHIELDS THAT COME DOWN ON THE SIDES. >> ABSOLUTELY. >> COOL. >> AND THE APOLLO SUITS ARE THE FIRST SUITS WITH THAT FAMOUS FISHBOWL TYPE HELMET. REMEMBER THAT? IF YOU LOOK AT YOUR EARLIER SUITS, THEY HAVE ROUND VISORS THAT ARE FIXED, BUT THEY’RE MORE OVAL OR SMALLER IN SHAPE, SO IT’S LIMITED VIEW. IN THE APOLLO SUITS, AND YOU’LL SEE IT ON THE CURRENT SUITS ON THE STATION, YOU HAVE THE FULL FISHBOWL HELMETS SO YOU CAN ALMOST HAVE A COMPLETE VIEW SIDE TO SIDE IN FRONT, A LITTLE ABOVE, LIMITED BELOW BY THE NECK RING, BUT A MUCH BIGGER FIELD OF VIEW FROM THE APOLLO AND THE CURRENT SUITS WE HAVE TODAY. >> AND THAT SOUNDS LIKE THE PERFECT REASON TO DO IT, RIGHT-- THEY LEARNED. THEY SAID, “ALL RIGHT, I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A BIGGER FIELD OF VIEW,” SO THEY DESIGNED A HELMET AND THEN WENT, “OKAY, NOW I CAN SEE A LOT MORE.” SO WHAT’S THE-- I KNOW THAT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I ALWAYS WANTED TO ASK IS I’M SURE-- YOU’RE OUTSIDE DOING A SPACEWALK FOR HOURS, RIGHT. YOUR NOSE HAS TO GET ITCHY. >> MAN, YOU KNEW YOUR NOSE WOULD GET ITCHY. [ LAUGHTER ] >> HOW DO YOU-- LIKE WHAT IF YOU JUST FEEL AN ITCH? LIKE, WHERE DO YOU GO? >> YEAH, SO-- >> DON’T THEY HAVE LIKE VELCRO OR SOMETHING? LIKE HARD VELCRO THEY CAN SCRUB THEIR NOSE ON OR SOMETHING? >> SO THERE ARE. THERE IS SOMETHING CALLED A VALSALVA. IT’S A STRANGE NAME, BUT IT’S KIND OF A-- NOT TO GET TOO INTO THE DETAILS-- IT’S A FOAM BLOCK THAT’S FIXED INSIDE THE HELMET ON THE NECK RING. >> OKAY. >> NOW, THE PURPOSE OF THIS ITEM THAT’S CALLED A VALSALVA IS FOR WHEN YOU’RE GOING THROUGH PREBREATHE AND YOU’RE PRESSURIZING THE SUIT BEFORE GOING OUT THE DOOR. LIKE WHEN YOU GO UP IN AN AIRPLANE, ONCE THAT CABIN STARTS PRESSURIZING, YOUR EARS CAN POP. THAT’S UNCOMFORTABLE. FOR US FLYING IN A PLANE, AND ESPECIALLY FOR SOMEONE INSIDE OF A SPACESUIT. ONLY THEY CAN’T GRAB THEIR NOSE AND BLOW THE AIR OUT TO EQUAL THE PRESSURIZATION. SO THEY HAVE THESE VALSALVAS THEY CAN FIT ON THEIR NOSE, AND THEY CAN KIND OF-- IT SERVES THE PURPOSE OF BLOCKING THE NASAL PASSAGE SO THEY CAN MAKE SURE THAT THEIR EARS DON’T POP. >> OH! >> SO YOU CAN SWALLOW, OR YOU CAN PUSH DOWN YOUR NOSE ON THIS BLOCK TO EQUALISE THE PRESSURE THERE. AND ALL THAT LONG STORY TO SAY, IF YOU CAN REACH YOUR NOSE DOWN THERE AND SCRATCH ON THAT BLOCK, THAT COULD BE AN OPTION, OTHERWISE YOU’RE OUT OF LUCK. >> YEAH, YEAH. WELL, I DIDN’T EVEN THINK ABOUT THAT. LIKE I WAS THINKING ABOUT ITCHY NOSE, BUT OF COURSE-- WHAT IF YOUR EARS HAVE TO POP? NOW YOU HAVE A THING TO DO THAT, TOO. >> ABSOLUTELY. >> THAT’S PRETTY COOL. >> LIKE YOU SAID EARLIER, IT’S THROUGH THESE GENERATIONS OF SUIT EVOLUTION THEY’VE LEARNED ALONG THE WAY, WITH GREAT CREW FEEDBACK OF “HEY, WE NEED THIS.” >> YEAH, YEAH, EXACTLY. WELL, YEAH. YOU’VE BEEN DOING-- THE FIRST SPACEWALK WAS, WE SAID, IN 1965. SO YOU HAVE A LOT TO LEARN FROM THE MID-60s TO NOW, OBVIOUSLY. SO WHAT ABOUT LIKE-- I MEAN, AGAIN, THINKING ABOUT YOU’RE OUTSIDE FOR THAT LONG. WHEN DO YOU EAT? DO YOU EAT LIKE RIGHT BEFOREHAND? LIKE BEFORE OR AFTER THE PREBREATHE? LIKE, I WOULD JUST GET SO HUNGRY. I HAVE TO EAT LIKE EVERY TWO TO THREE HOURS. >> I’M WITH YOU, GARY. THAT’S PROBABLY THE ONLY REASON WE’RE NOT ASTRONAUTS-- WE’VE GOT TO EAT EVERY TWO OR THREE HOURS. >> THAT WOULD BE, HONESTLY-- EVERYTHING ELSE I QUALIFY FOR, OBVIOUSLY, BUT I HAVE TO EAT EVERY TWO OR THREE HOURS, OR I CAN’T. [ LAUGHTER ] >> SO I WOULD SAY THAT’S CREW MEMBER SPECIFIC, WHERE YOU SEE AS-- I DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT WHEN I WOULD RUN MARATHONS, I HAD FRIENDS THAT COULD EAT A BURGER BEFORE A MARATHON WITH NO PROBLEM. THAT’S NOT THIS GUY. >> NOT THIS GUY, EITHER. NO WAY. >> AND SO, SAME THING WITH CREW MEMBERS. YOU HAVE SOME THAT-- THEY HAVE A LOT OF TIME EARLIER ON WHERE IT’S RECOMMENDED, “DO NOT EAT PAST THIS TIME.” AND THERE ARE SOME THAT’LL EAT RIGHT UP ALONG THAT BARRIER, AND THERE ARE SOME THAT’LL STOP EATING WAY BEFORE THAT. BECAUSE NATURALLY, WHEN YOU EAT, NOT ONLY DOES IT SUPPLY ENERGY TO YOUR BODY, BUT IT ALSO CAUSES NORMAL BODILY FUNCTIONS AS WELL, WHICH LEADS INTO ANOTHER DISCUSSION. [ LAUGHTER ] >> THAT’S RIGHT. LET’S GO INTO THAT ONE. [ LAUGHTER ] YEAH, SO, SEVEN HOURS. AGAIN, YOU’RE OUT THERE FOR A LONG TIME. YOU’VE GOT TO GO TO THE BATHROOM. >> THAT’S RIGHT. >> WHAT DO THEY DO? >> YEAH, THAT’S A CALL THAT YOU HAVE TO ANSWER. >> RIGHT, RIGHT. >> SO UNFORTUNATELY, AS WE SAID EARLIER, WHEN YOU’RE OUT IN A SPACEWALK, YOU CAN’T JUST SAY, “HEY JOHN, I’M GOING TO HEAD INSIDE AND HIT THE JOHN.” YOU’RE STUCK OUT THERE FOR THE DURATION. >> OH, YEAH. AND EVERY MOMENT IS PLANNED, RIGHT? >> THAT’S RIGHT. >> SO YOU CAN’T-- YOU HAVE TO JUST DO YOUR THING. >> YES, ABSOLUTELY. AND SO THERE IS NO TOILET INSIDE THE SUIT. THEY HAVE-- AN ACRONYM WOULD BE THE MAG, AND IT’S BASICALLY AN ABSORPTION GARMENT. >> AS IN MAXIMUM? >> YOU’VE GOT IT, MY FRIEND. >> ALL RIGHT! >> YOU’VE GOT IT, YOU’VE GOT IT. >> BRING THAT ABSORBENCY UP TO MAXIMUM. >> SO IT’S BASICALLY A VERY LARGE DEPENDS DIAPER THAT THEY’LL WEAR ON THESE SPACEWALKS. NOW, I CAN TELL YOU, ANYONE WHO’S BEEN INSIDE A SUIT HAS ZERO DESIRE TO USE THAT DIAPER. >> YES, I CAN IMAGINE. >> ABSOLUTELY. BUT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM IS GLAD IT’S THERE IF THEY GET THAT CALL. >> YES, YEAH. OKAY, YEAH. I COULD TOTALLY SEE THAT. AND THERE’S WATER, TOO, IN THE SUIT IN CASE YOU GET THIRSTY? >> ABSOLUTELY. SAME THING WITH THE MARATHON-- YOU’VE GOT TO HAVE HYDRATION, AND SO THEY HAVE WHAT THEY CALL DISPOSABLE IN SUIT DRINK BAGS. SITS RIGHT HERE ON THE CHEST, ACTUALLY VELCROS TO THE LIQUID COOLING VENTILATION GARMENT, WHICH IS HOW THEY GET THE COOLANT INSIDE THE SUIT. >> AH. >> OVER 300 FEET OF LITTLE TUBES RUN OVER THEIR ENTIRE BODY THAT CAN PROVIDE WARM OR COLD WATER THAT THE CREW MEMBER CAN ADJUST AS THEY PREFER ON A TEMPERATURE CONTROL VALVE. >> IT’S LIKE A SPACE VERSION OF AIR CONDITIONING. >> THAT’S RIGHT, LOWER THERMOSTAT RIGHT THERE. >> I’M TOO COLD. I’M JUST GOING TO TURN THE HEAT UP. OH, YEAH. >> THERE YOU GO. WELL, SITTING ON TOP OF THAT IS THAT BAG WITH WATER. >> YEAH. >> AND THEY’LL TAKE OUT 32-ISH OUNCES OF WATER AS SUITS THEM. >> OKAY, ALL RIGHT. SO THEY HAVE A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT THEY NEED. OBVIOUSLY YOU HAVE TO PLAN FOR THAT IF YOU’RE GOING TO GO OUT IN SPACE FOR THAT LONG. THAT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE. SO LET’S SEE. HOW MUCH DO THEY WEIGH? THAT’S A BIG QUESTION, RIGHT? >> A BIG QUESTION, AND BIG WEIGHT. >> YEAH. >> SO EVERY SUIT THAT’S AN EMU-- HERE I AM WITH ACRONYMS AGAIN-- THE SPACESUIT THAT OUR CREW MEMBERS USE, OUR U.S. CREW MEMBERS USE IS DESIGNED TO FIT FROM THE 5th PERCENTILE UP TO THE 95th PERCENTILE OF MEN AND WOMEN. AND SO WITH THAT, YOU HAVE CERTAIN COMPONENTS THAT ARE INTERCHANGEABLE AND DO NOT CHANGE. WHAT I MEAN BY THAT IS LIKE THE HARD UPPER TORSO-- PICTURE THE TORSO OF THE SUIT. >> YES. >> YOU’VE GOT THREE SIZES, AND THE MAJORITY OF CREW MEMBERS MIGHT USE A LARGE, FOR EXAMPLE. AND THEY SHARE THAT LARGE BETWEEN THEM. BUT ALL THE PIECES THAT CONNECT TO THE SUIT, THE ARMS, THE GLOVES, THE BOOTS, THOSE CAN ADJUST IN SIZE. AND SO IF IT’S A SMALLER SIZE IT’S GOING TO WEIGH LESS. IF IT’S A LARGER SIZE, IT’LL WEIGH MORE. BUT OVERALL, THE AVERAGE WEIGHT OF A SPACESUIT ITSELF IS ABOUT 270 POUNDS. >> WOW! >> YEAH. >> OKAY, THAT’S PRETTY HEAVY. WELL, ON EARTH, RIGHT? SO IT’S GOT SOME WEIGHT. SO HOW WOULD-- I GUESS 300 POUNDS IN SPACE WOULD BE NOT SO HARD TO MOVE AROUND, RIGHT? I GUESS YOU’RE IN THE MICROGRAVITY ENVIRONMENT. BUT LIKE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT EARLIER, IT’S THAT PRESSURE. IT’S THE PRESSURE INSIDE WHERE YOU HAVE THE GLOVES AND YOU’RE TRYING TO SQUEEZE YOUR HANDS, AND THAT’S KIND OF THE HARD PART. >> SURE. YEAH, WHAT CAN BE OUR FRIEND AT TIMES IS MOMENTUM OR INERTIA. AND THAT CAN BE AN ENEMY AT TIMES AS WELL, WHEN YOU’RE IN THAT MICRO ENVIRONMENT. SO CREW MEMBERS ARE TRAINED SPECIFICALLY TO GO SLOW ALONG A SPACE STATION. IF YOU GET 300 POUNDS MOVING, IT CAN BE DIFFICULT TO STOP. NOW, THEY CAN STOP IT, BUT IT’S JUST WASTED ENERGY. SO THEY GO VERY SLOWLY SO THEY DON’T GET THAT LARGE MASS MOVING TOO QUICKLY. >> I’D ASSUME IT ALSO HELPS WITH CONSERVING ENERGY, TOO, RIGHT? >> THAT’S RIGHT. >> SO NOT ONLY DO YOU CONSIDER AND MAKE SURE YOU CAN HAVE CONTROLLED MOVEMENT, AND YOU’RE GOING THE RIGHT PACE, AND YOU DON’T FLY EVERYWHERE, USING THAT LIMITED AMOUNT OF ENERGY BECAUSE YOU’RE CARRYING EVERYTHING WITH YOU, RIGHT? WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT THE NEUTRAL BUOYANCY LABORATORY, YOU HAVE UMBILICALS THAT HOOK UP TO ALL THE OXYGEN AND EVERYTHING YOU WANT, BUT YOU ONLY HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT WITH YOU. BECAUSE IT’S LIKE BACKPACKING, IN SPACE, WITH A LOT MORE TECHNOLOGY. >> YES, YES. >> BUT YEAH, SO YOU REALLY HAVE TO CONSERVE. YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE-- YOU HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF OXYGEN, SO YOU HAVE TO BREATHE SLOWLY AND MAKE SURE YOUR HEART RATE’S NOT GOING UP, YOU’RE CALM WHEN YOU’RE DOING IT. >> GREAT POINT. >> YEAH, OKAY. BECAUSE I REMEMBER LISTENING WHEN WE WERE ON THE EVA, DOING THE EVA-- LIKE I WAS SAYING, THE SPACEWALK. >> THERE YOU GO WITH YOUR ACRONYMS. >> WE WERE DOING THE SPACEWALK JUST A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, AND YEAH, THEY WERE SAYING YOU’VE GOT TO MAKE SURE YOU TAKE YOUR TIME WHEN YOU’RE MOVING AROUND. BECAUSE YOU’RE OUT THERE FOR-- PLAN SIX AND A HALF, IT CAN GO UP TO SEVEN. LAST TIME IT WAS SEVEN HOURS, FOUR MINUTES. IT CAN GO UP TO EIGHT, AND I THINK THE LONGEST SPACEWALK EVER WAS ALMOST NINE. IT WAS LIKE 8 HOURS, 52 MINUTES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. >> IT WAS CLOSE. >> THAT’S A LONG TIME TO BE OUT THERE, AND YOU’VE GOT TO MAKE SURE YOU’RE CONSERVING THAT ENERGY. SO LET’S TALK ABOUT-- YOU BRIEFLY MENTIONED THAT THIS IS WHAT THE EMU IS MEANT TO DO, AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT YOU GET CERTIFIED TO DO THIS, THAT-- WHAT’S HAPPENING NOW TO DESIGN FUTURE SUITS? ESPECIALLY NOT-- BECAUSE THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION IS GOING TO BE THERE FOR THE NEXT HOPEFULLY DECADE, I WOULD THINK. >> SURE. >> BUT AFTER THAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT DEEP SPACE. WE’RE TALKING ABOUT PLANETARY EXPLORATION. WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE ABOUT THE SUIT TO MEET THOSE NEEDS? >> YEAH, SO WE HAVE A LOT OF DATA ON WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE, BUT THERE’S A LOT OF DATA THAT WE DON’T KNOW YET. >> RIGHT, BECAUSE WE HAVEN’T BEEN THERE. >> THAT’S RIGHT, SO LIKE THE PIONEERS WITH THE HIGH ALTITUDE FLYING FOUND, “HEY, MY SUIT IS ONLY DESIGNED TO GO UP AT 5,000 FEET, AND NOW I’M AT 40,000 FEET. I THINK I’M REACHING THAT ENVELOPE.” YOU NEED NEW MATERIALS. YOU NEED NEW VEHICLES. WE’RE GOING TO FIND OUT THE SAME THING WITH THE SUIT. WHAT WE DO KNOW IS THAT THE CURRENT SPACESUIT THAT SERVES FANTASTICALLY AT THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION IS NOT A PLANETARY SUIT. MOBILITY WILL BE AN ISSUE. IT IS NOT MEANT TO WALK IN IN A GRAVITY ENVIRONMENT. THINGS WE’LL HAVE TO LOOK INTO IS-- EVEN THE APOLLO SUIT, WHICH WAS LIGHTER, A LITTLE MORE FLEXIBLE, HAD SOME DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS TO ALLOW THE CREW MEMBERS TO STOOP DOWN AND PICK UP ROCKS WHERE THE CURRENT SUIT COULDN’T. EVEN THAT SUIT, THERE WAS LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES THERE WHERE THEY DIDN’T EXPECT THE AMOUNT OF DUST AND DIRT THAT WOULD COME IN AND GET INSIDE ALL THE SEALS. AND IT SOUNDS MINOR, BUT CLEANLINESS CAN HAVE CATASTROPHIC RESULTS IF YOU DON’T HAVE A CERTAIN LEVEL OF CLEANLINESS. >> THAT’S RIGHT. THEY’RE TINY LITTLE THINGS. >> THAT’S RIGHT. IF THEY GET INSIDE SEAL AND SURFACES, YOU COULD HAVE A LEAK, AND A LEAK IS SOMETHING THAT YOU DO NOT WANT WHEN YOU’RE OUT DOING A SPACEWALK. SO THERE ARE-- THE SHORT ANSWER IS OUR CURRENT SUITS ARE CERTIFIED FOR THE LOW EARTH ENVIRONMENT, FROM RADIATION REQUIREMENTS, TO THERMAL REQUIREMENTS, TO-- YOU DON’T REALLY NEED MOBILITY IN YOUR LOWER HALF. YOU JUST NEED YOUR UPPER BODY TO BE ABLE TO MOVE. REMEMBER, YOUR HANDS ARE SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT TOOLS YOU HAVE ON SPACE STATION. YOUR FEET AND LEGS ARE NEAR USELESS. THEY GET A LITTLE BIT OF USE, BUT NOT A WHOLE LOT. WELL, PLANETARY SUITS, WE’RE GOING TO NEED LEGS AND FEET. WE’RE GOING TO NEED TO USE THEM A LOT. >> DEFINITELY. >> AS YOU WERE HITTING ON EARLIER, AT THE LUNAR ACTIVITIES, WE’RE ONLY FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. BUT IF WE GO TO MARS, AND IF WE LAND ON MARS, WE’RE GOING TO BE OUT THERE FOR A LOT MORE THAN A COUPLE OF DAYS. SO WE NEED A SUIT THAT’S ROBUST ENOUGH TO SUPPORT THOSE REQUIREMENTS. >> OKAY, SO I HAVE-- I’M SURE YOU’VE SEEN THE MOVIE “THE MARTIAN,” RIGHT? >> I HAVE! >> YEAH, IT’S A GOOD MOVIE. IT’S A GOOD MOVIE. SO IN THAT ONE, WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT A PLANETARY SUIT, THEY HAD THOSE LIKE SKINTIGHT ORANGE THINGS. THEY LOOKED SUPER COOL. >> AWESOME SUITS. >> YEAH, THEY LOOKED AWESOME. BUT THEN WHEN THEY WERE UP ORBITING MARS, AND THEY HAD THAT WHOLE-- I DON’T WANT TO-- IN CASE ANYONE HASN’T SEEN IT-- >> SPOILER ALERT. >> WHICH, IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN IT, WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU? YOU NEED TO SEE IT. BUT THEY HAD-- WHEN THEY WERE ORBITING EARTH, THEY HAD THE EMU. THEY HAD THAT BIG WHITE SUIT. AND THEN IT GOT A LITTLE TIGHTER, SKINTIGHT. IS THERE A CHANCE THAT MAYBE A PLANETARY SUIT WOULD BE SKINTIGHT, OR DO YOU NEED THOSE EXTRA LAYERS? >> SO YEAH, GREAT QUESTION. IT DEPENDS ON WHAT PLANET WE GO TO. >> OKAY. >> I MEAN, YOU HIT ON EARLIER THAT THERE’S A LITTLE BIT OF ATMOSPHERE IN THE LOW EARTH ORBIT THAT PROTECTS THE STATION TO A CERTAIN EXTENT AND CAUSES DRAG. WELL, ON MARS THERE’S ATMOSPHERE, AS WELL, WHEREAS OTHER PLANETS OR OTHER MOONS AROUND OTHER PLANETS THAT MAYBE IN THE FUTURE WE’LL LOOK AT GOING TO, WILL HAVE NEAR ZERO ATMOSPHERE. THAT’S WHERE YOU’LL NEED THE MULTIPLE LAYERS, LIKE IN OUR EMU RIGHT NOW. WHEN YOU HAVE THAT VERY MINIMAL ATMOSPHERE. M>> OKAY. >> THE MARS, WE SHOULD HAVE MORE OF AN ATMOSPHERE. WHAT YOU WANT THERE-- WHERE WE MAY GET TO MORE MULTIPLE LAYERS IS IF WE NEED A-- IF THE TECHNOLOGY IS NOT AVAILABLE TO HAVE ROBUSTNESS IN A SKINTIGHT SUIT, THEN YOU’LL GET THE MULTIPLE LAYERS. >> OH, OKAY. >> BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY YOU DON’T WANT A SUIT THAT’S GOING TO WEAR OUT AND GET A HOLE SOONER. THEN YOU’RE IN TROUBLE OUT THERE. >> RIGHT. >> BUT ABSOLUTELY, THOSE SKINTIGHT SUITS LIKE MATT DAMON HAD IN “THE MARTIAN,” AND THERE’S EVEN BEEN SOME PLAYED AROUND WITH HERE IN THE U.S. THAT WE’VE DONE SOME STUDIES FOR ADVANCED SUITS. THOSE ARE BY FAR PREFERRED IN THE ASPECTS OF MOBILITY. YOU CAN MOVE AROUND IN THOSE A LOT EASIER WITHOUT GETTING PAIN OR ABRASION FROM MULTIPLE LAYERS RUBBING ON YOU. YOU MENTIONED BACKPACKING EARLIER. WELL, IF YOU HAD A COUPLE PAIRS OF JEANS ON AT ONE TIME, AND THEN A NUMBER OF SHIRTS ON, AND THEN A BACKPACK, YOU’RE GOING GET BLISTERS AND PAIN IN PLACES. YOU DON’T WANT TO FEEL THAT. THAT’S THE TRADE OFF FOR IF YOU GET A SUIT WITH A LOT OF LAYERS OF INSULATION AND WHATNOT, AND THEN YOU TRY TO WALK DISTANCES. THAT’S GOING TO BE UNCOMFORTABLE. >> YEAH. IF THEY DO, THEY’LL PROBABLY HAVE TO DO SHORT EVAs, OR SPACEWALKS. >> OR A LUNAR ROVER. >> OH, THAT’S WHERE THE ROVER COMES IN. SO I’VE SEEN THEY HAVE ONE HERE AT THE JOHNSON SPACE CENTER CALLED THE SUV. IT’S LIKE AN ANALOG. THEY SEE-- IT LOOKS VERY MUCH LIKE THE ONE THAT WAS IN “THE MARTIAN.” IN FACT, “THE MARTIAN” KIND OF COPIED US. BUT THAT’S FINE. >> I’M OKAY WITH THAT. >> IN THE BACK, THEY HAD SUITS ON THE OUTSIDE. >> YES. >> THERE’S A REASON FOR THAT, RIGHT? >> YES. >> AND THAT WAS THAT DUST THING THAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT A LITTLE BIT. >> YES, YES, THAT ABSOLUTELY PLAYS INTO IT. ONE OF THE COOL THINGS ABOUT THE CURRENT SUIT WE HAVE TODAY IS JUST THE LARGE PERCENTILE OF INDIVIDUALS THAT CAN FIT INTO IT. MAYBE NOT PERFECTLY, BUT THEY CAN GET INSIDE THAT SUIT, SMALL OR LARGE, AND GO OUT AND DO AN EVA, WHEREAS THE OTHER SUITS THAT ARE FIXED IN SIZING-- I’M GONNA USE-- OBVIOUSLY THE ORLAN HAS BEEN GREAT FOR MANY YEARS. NOT HITTING THAT AT ALL, JUST SHOWING THE DIFFERENCES. >> RIGHT. >> YOU CAN'T CHANGE THE CUT SIZE. I MEAN, YOU EITHER HAVE A 37 INCH TO 44 INCH CHEST, AND YOU CAN FIT IN THERE, OR YOU CAN’T. >> OH. >> AND SO THERE’S GREAT THINGS ABOUT THAT. ONE OF THE BAD THINGS ABOUT THE EMU SUIT WHERE THOSE-- IS THAT YOU DON’T GET A LOT OF SHOULDER MOVEMENT, AND IT’S A LOT LONGER TO GET IN WHEN YOU HAVE TO PUT THE SUIT TOGETHER. ON THE GROUND WITH TECH SUPPORT, WE CAN GET THEM IN THERE IN 45 MINUTES. WHEN THEY’RE ON ORBIT, IT’S DIFFICULT TO SLIDE UP INSIDE THAT HARD UPPER TORSO. ALL RIGHT, NOW I HAVE TO PUT MY GLOVES ON, HELMET ON. NOW I’VE GOT TO PUT PANTS ON. I EXPLAINED IT IN 20 SECONDS. THOSE GUYS ARE TAKING OVER AN HOUR WITH HELP, PROFESSIONALLY TRAINED PEOPLE, TO GET INSIDE THAT SUIT. >> RIGHT. >> SO YOU HIT ON THAT SUIT ON THE BACK OF THE VEHICLE. IT OPENS UP INSIDE THAT VEHICLE. YOU CAN CRAWL INTO THAT SUIT FROM INSIDE YOUR VEHICLE WITHOUT HAVING TO DEPRESSURIZE THE WHOLE VEHICLE, CLOSE THAT HATCH ON THE SUIT, AND THEN WALK RIGHT OFF THE BACK OF THE VEHICLE. >> SWEET. >> PRETTY NEAT. >> THAT’S AWESOME, BUT YOU’RE RIGHT. YOU HAVE A SIZE THING TO CONSIDER BECAUSE YOU DON’T HAVE THAT ADJUSTABLE FEATURES OF THE EMU THAT’S ON STATION RIGHT NOW. >> BUT SINCE THE EMU WAS DESIGNED, THERE IS TECHNOLOGY THAT’S ALLOWED US TO VERY QUICKLY ADJUST THE SIZE ON SOME OF THOSE FIXED SUITS THAT FORMERLY WE COULDN’T. SO THAT’S NOT AN ISSUE TODAY, ALTHOUGH IT WAS IN THE ‘80s WHEN WE DESIGNED THE EMU. >> RIGHT. WOW. THAT IS SO COOL. OKAY, ONE MORE QUESTION, AND THEN I’M GOING TO LET YOU GO. SO WE TALKED ABOUT “THE MARTIAN” AND THOSE SKINTIGHT SUITS, BUT THERE WAS ONE SCENE IN THERE THAT HE WAS KIND OF FLOATING AROUND. AND, WELL, OKAY, I’M NOT GOING TO DO ANY SPOILERS, BUT BASICALLY HE HAD TO-- HE HAD TO-- >> I HEAR SPOILER. >> OKAY, IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN “THE MARTIAN” YET, TURN OFF THE PODCAST. I’LL GIVE YOU THREE SECONDS. ONE, TWO, THREE. OKAY, SO HE POKES A HOLE IN HIS GLOVE ON THE OUTSIDE, AND HE HAS TO PROPEL HIMSELF OUT INTO THE THING. >> YES. >> IS THAT LIKE A THING? CAN THAT HAPPEN? I MEAN, IT PROBABLY CAN’T BE SUCCESSFUL LIKE IT WAS IN “THE MARTIAN,” BUT IS THAT A THING? IF YOU WERE TO POKE A HOLE, WOULD YOU PROPEL YOURSELF? >> SO-- MAN. SO THERE’S DEFINITELY SOME HOLLYWOOD ASPECTS TO THAT, NO DOUBT ABOUT IT. >> YES, YES. >> BUT YES, IN THEORY, YOU HAVE A PRESSURIZED SUIT. YOU’VE GOT TWO PRIMARY OXYGEN TANKS, AND THEN YOU HAVE A SECONDARY OXYGEN TANK THAT HOLDS JUST IN ITSELF ABOUT 6,000 POUNDS OF PRESSURE OF OXYGEN. SO IF YOU HAVE A HOLE AND YOU’RE PUSHING OUT AIR, EVEN IF IT’S A LOW FORCE, IT WILL GET THAT BODY MOVING. NOW, I CAN’T TELL YOU THAT IT’S GOING TO FLY YOU TO A DIFFERENT SPACECRAFT LIKE IN THE MOVIE, BUT IT WOULD BE SOME LEVEL OF PROPULSION, AND IT WOULD HELP YOU OUT. >> THAT IS SO COOL. ALL RIGHT, COOL. I JUST LOVE THAT MOVIE. THAT’S WHY I KEEP BRINGING IT UP. >> IT’S A GREAT MOVIE. >> IT’S A GOOD ONE. WELL, I THINK THAT’S ALL THE TIME WE HAVE, LES. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING ON. THIS WAS SO INTERESTING, BUT I’M SURE WE DID NOT HIT ALL OF THE POINTS ABOUT SPACESUITS. THERE’S A LOT MORE TO THIS TOPIC. >> MY HUGE BINDER WASN’T USED. >> SO IF YOU’RE LISTENING AND YOU DO HAVE QUESTIONS, MAKE SURE TO SUBMIT THEM. STAY TUNED ‘TIL AFTER THE LITTLE ENDING MUSIC CREDITS HERE, AND THEN WE’LL TALK ABOUT WHERE YOU CAN SUBMIT SOME IDEAS. AND MAYBE WE’LL DO A SPACESUITS NUMBER TWO EPISODE. WHO KNOWS. I’M SURE THERE’S MORE WE COULD TALK ABOUT. SO THANKS AGAIN, LES, AND STICK AROUND FOR MORE ON SPACESUITS. >> THANKS FOR HAVING ME, GARY. >> NO PROBLEM. ALL RIGHT. [ MUSIC ] [ INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER ] >> WELCOME TO SPACE. >> HEY, THANKS FOR STICKING AROUND. SO TODAY WE TALKED WITH LES PADILLA ABOUT SPACESUITS. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT EVERYTHING SPACESUITS, JUST GO TO NASA.GOV/SUITUP. WE’VE GOT A NICE REFERENCE THERE FOR ALL DIFFERENT KINDS OF SPACESUITS, INCLUDING THE EMUs, MAINLY WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT TODAY. OTHERWISE, YOU CAN GO TO NASA.GOV/ISS TO LEARN ABOUT EVERYTHING GOING ON ABOARD THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION. AND JUST THIS PAST MONTH IN OCTOBER, WE HAD THREE SPACEWALKS, WHERE ASTRONAUTS WERE GOING OUT IN THE EMUs TO CONDUCT SPACEWALK AND MAINTENANCE ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE STATION. YOU CAN ALSO FIND ALL THIS INFORMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SO JUST GO TO FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM. YOU KNOW THIS, RIGHT? WE TALK ABOUT IT ALL THE TIME. INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ACCOUNTS ON WHATEVER SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM YOU LIKE-- FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM. ON FACEBOOK, INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION. ON TWITTER IT’S @SPACE_STATION AND INSTAGRAM IS @ISS. AND IN THE BEGINNING, YOU CAN SEE THAT ALLYOOP ACTUALLY SUGGESTED THE TOPIC FOR THIS EPISODE, AND WE’RE LISTENING TO EVERYTHING YOU HAVE TO SAY. SO JUST USE THE HASHTAG #ASKNASA ON YOUR FAVORITE PLATFORM, AND SUBMIT AN IDEA FOR SOMETHING YOU’D LIKE TO HEAR ABOUT OR A QUESTION YOU’D LIKE TO ANSWER, OR MAYBE YOU’D LIKE TO FOCUS AN ENTIRE EPISODE ON ONE SPECIFIC TOPIC. SO WE’LL MAKE SURE TO LOOK AT THOSE IDEAS AND FIND THE RIGHT PERSON TO BRING ON THE SHOW. JUST MAKE SURE TO MENTION IT’S FOR HWHAP-- H-W-H-A-P-- “HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PODCAST.” THIS PODCAST WAS RECORDED ON APRIL 13, 2017. THANKS TO ALEX PERRYMAN, JOHN STOLL, AND MATT MACKENZIE. AND THANKS AGAIN TO LES PADILLA FOR COMING ON THE SHOW. WE’LL BE BACK NEXT WEEK.