Professor on space mission prepares for zero gravity

During his 16 days in space, University professor James Pawelczyk will have a chance to run for three straight hours, climb inside a paper bag, dissect a few animals and teach a class to University students. And, he hopes, have a chance to look out the window.

Pawelczyk, assistant professor of physiology and kinesiology, and the rest of the seven-person crew will not have much time for stargazing during their flight on the Space Shuttle Columbia April 2. They will fill their days with testing the effects of space flight on the nervous system, adjusting to space flight and interacting with the world below.

"It's a good way to give people a more first-hand account of what's going on," Pawelczyk said from the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Most of the flight will consist of experiments conducted on both themselves and the animals they bring, experiments that will be practiced exhaustively before the flight. Each crew member is in charge of a few experiments -- Pawelczyk's deals with blood pressure and other parts of the autonomic nervous system.

In one test, he said he will run for three to four hours. In another, an astronaut will be enclosed in a giant bag as the pressure is lowered. During each, blood pressure and reflexes will be carefully monitored.

Another crew member has organized a series of experiments with animals brought on board. Veterinarian Rick Linnehan, who works for NASA, will bring fish, snails, crickets and 192 rodents for testing.

"It's pretty much a zoo," Pawelczyk said.

Pawelczyk said the experiments may provide insight about life in zero gravity. Without gravity, movement becomes three dimensional, he said, so a person's spatial orientation and sense of balance may be altered.

The results will be of special interest to students taking Physiology 510 (Physiological Adaptations to Stress). The graduate course, which focuses on the same type of research Pawelczyk does, will watch him discuss his work through a television link. Then, Pawelczyk will answer a few questions students ask over the radio.

"I don't know if it gets much better than that," said physiology professor for the class Peter Farrell.

But before Pawelczyk is ready to make history as the first University faculty member in space, he must complete training in Houston. The seven crew members ride high-speed aircrafts, float in swimming pools and learn how to escape a cockpit in 90 seconds or less.

The crew also takes classes in less serious matters, such as how to cook and use the bathroom in space. The classes are usually enjoyable, Pawelczyk said, like space flight itself.

"Every minute of the day is fun," he said. "It's such a unique environment."

Amid the hectic schedule of space flight, what he said he looks forward to the most has little to do with science.

"I do hope to get a few minutes to just look out the window," he said. "I hear it's quite a sight to see Earth from space."