NASA space inventions benefit all our lives on Earth (Space on MSNBC.com)
Whenever the U.S. space program is highlighted in the news, the public interest in space exploration always spikes. Early in the NASA’s history, space exploration revolved around the discovery of new planets and galaxies, the collection of moon rocks, and on images taken of Earth from outer space. However, as the Space Shuttle’s missions have become longer, astronauts are conducting a number of other experiments onboard, many of which have nothing to do with space travel. As a result, the interest in space travel has been focused on the results of certain experiments that can only be conducted in this unique environment.
A recent article on Space on MSNBC.com shows astronaut Leroy Chiao performing an eye examination onboard the International Space Station. The exam was performed on Salizhan Sharipov, a cosmonaut who took advantage of NASA’s ultrasound-based “all purpose diagnostic machine”. This ultrasound machine is unique, in that it is directly linked from the Space Station to doctors on Earth. Why use ultrasound machines in space? Like most of the other space-bound experiments, it has a practical application. The technology used here will be developed into a telemedicine ultrasound machine that can be used to diagnose sick people who live in isolated or rural communities around the world.
Ultrasound machines aren’t the only technology that has been tested in recent space missions. Others have included experiments to help improve children’s nutrition, sunglasses that block UV light, memory foam mattresses, cell phone cameras, CAT scans and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).
While NASA’s true mission is exploration technology and innovations, or understanding what makes the universe “tick”, they have inadvertently recorded a long list of new inventions along the way. While many of these new technologies may not have found practical applications yet on earth, and many of them fail to make it all the way, it is nice to know that the wheels are still turning.
