Artificial gravity in Space: vestibular tolerance assessed by human centrifuge spinning on Earth

Artificial gravity created by the astronauts themselves, without any external power supply, by pedalling on coupled counterrotating bicycles along the inner wall of the space module (Twin Bikes System, TBS), was previously suggested (Antonutto et al., 1991) to prevent musculo-skeletal decay and cardiovascular deconditioning during long term space flights. To investigate whether this unusual rotating environment would determine abnormal stimulations of the vestibular system due to Coriolis cross coupled accelerations, thus leading to acute motion sickness (AMS), the conditions of a rotating environment were reproduced in a human centrifuge. A cycloergometer was fixed to the arm of the centrifuge, the rotation speed of which was equal to that yielding 1 g at the feet level in the TBS (i.e. ranging from 19 to 21 RPM). The ergometer position was such that the combination of the horizontal and gravitational acceleration vectors was 1.414 at the inner ear level and was aligned along the head to feet axis. Three subjects, pedalling at 50 W on a cycloergometer during centrifuge's spinning, were asked to move the head following an AMS' provocation protocol. None of them developed any AMS symptoms. This supports the look of the TBS as tool for avoiding musculo-skeletal and cardiovascular deconditioning during long term space flights.