November 1983
From The Space Library
NASA announced that it had set up at JSC the Biomedical Research Institute, which would function as part of the Space Adaptation Project within the Space Transportation Systems Program Office, to focus efforts on solving some of the problems space crews had in adjusting to a weightless environment. The Space Adaptation Syndrome was the name that NASA gave to a wide range of physical problems that astronauts sometimes experienced, including nausea, vomiting, and general malaise. Approximately 45% of astronauts who had flown had experienced some of those symptoms. Flight data on the problems had been collected over 22 years of manned spaceflight, particularly during the extended Skylab missions. Experiments were performed on Space Shuttle flights with physician astronauts Dr. Norman Thagard on STS-7 and Dr. William Thornton, the principal investigator and designer of much of the experimental hardware and research on STS-8. In an attempt to speed up the process of finding countermeasures and perhaps predict who might be more susceptible to the condition, NASA created the research project and established the institute. Elena Huffstetler was named project manager, and Dr. Sam Pool, chief of medical sciences at Johnson, was director. At NASA Headquarters, the Space Medicine Branch, Life Sciences Division, Office of Space Science and Applications, would be responsible for managing the program of both clinical and applied research in this area. (NASA Release 83-167)
NASA announced that Robert O. Aller was appointed associate administrator for space tracking and data systems. Aller, then director of the Tracking and Data Satellite System Division, succeeded Robert E. Smylie, who left NASA October 28 to become vice president for government communications services at the RCA American Communications Company in Princeton, N.J. Aller came to NASA in August 1964 from the Philco Corporation in Houston. Prior to joining Philco, he served for 10 years in the United States Air Force. He had held numerous positions in NASA during the Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, [[Apollo Soyuz Test Project]] (ASTP), and Space Transportation System (STS) programs. In September 1977 he was appointed deputy director of expendable launch vehicles and in 1979 to his current position, where he was responsible for the planning, direction, execution, and evaluation of the TDRS Program. Aller had twice been awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Medal for his work in the Apollo and Skylab programs, and he also received the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal while working on the Apollo/Soyuz Test project. (NASA anno, Nov 3/83)
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