NASA engineers must quantify everything. But no matter how many equations they use to calculate launch windows, estimate exposure to cosmic radiation or create flight trajectories, there’s one thing they can’t quantify: the mental health of astronauts.
Now, NASA astronauts may soon embark on even longer trips into deep space. Long-distance relationships are hard enough on Earth. On a three-year, round trip trek to Mars, navigating the unparalleled separation from home could be one of the biggest challenges to a successful mission (SN: 11/14/14).
Space: The Longest Goodbye, a documentary directed by Ido Mizrahy, follows the journey of mentally preparing astronauts for such an unprecedented trip and reflects on the history of the NASA psychological unit. It premieres in theaters on March 8, as well as on Apple TV, Amazon and other streaming services.
The film primarily follows astronauts Kayla Barron — a member of NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to send people to the moon and then Mars (SN: 11/16/22) — and Cady Coleman, who spent over 100 days aboard the space station. The film is not just about these two astronauts going to space; it’s also about the families they leave behind.
2024-03-08 08:00:00
Source from www.sciencenews.org