"Lo-LIGHT Selected for the 105 day Mars Mission"
Harvard University Selects Low-Intensity GreenLIGHT Lamps for Space Study
Harvard University has selected Sunnex Biotechnologies Lo-LIGHT lamps for a study to evaluate lighting interventions for countering sleep disruption due to shift work or long hours in an international space project, the 105 day Mars Mission. The study, Operational Evaluation of a Photic Countermeasure to Improve Alertness, Performance, and Mood During Night-Shift Work on the 105-Day Study (105-Day Russian Chamber Study), is being funded by the National Space Biomedical Research Institute in Houston, Texas.
The 105-Day Mars Mission, a partnership between Russia's Institute of Biomedical Problems and the European Space Agency, is the precursor to a 520-Day mission, the Mars 500 project, scheduled for 2010. The isolation facility consists of several interconnected, modules containing medical and scientific research areas, living quarters, a kitchen, greenhouse and exercise facility.The crew, composed of four Russians and two Europeans, simulated a 105-day Mars mission full of experiments and realistic mission scenarios.
The Lighting Intervention Study, with lead investigator Dr. Charles A. Czeisler of Harvard University, compared the effects of different wavelengths of light on performance, alertness, and mood during the night shift. The trials consited of two different wavelengths of light in the green spectrum, a shorter wavelength green light [the Sunnex Biotechnologies GreenLIGHT], and a medium wavelength green light(445-455 nm), as well as a control condition with longer wavelength (620 -690 nm) red light. Crew members and mission control personnel participated.
The experiment, which replicated studies done in sleep laboratories, examined the effect of exposure to
Sunnex Biotechnologies low-intensity Lo-LIGHT lamp on job performance in the middle of the night and
when participants have been awake for a long time. It is anticipated that by applying understandings
developed in sleep laboratories to an operational environment like the 105 day Mars Mission, it will be
learned how to best utilize light management on an actual spaceflight.
It is also expected that the findings of these studies will have an impact beyond the space program and that
the lessons learned in these trials will be applicable to people working the night shift. The patented
low-intensity Sunnex Biotechnologies GreenLIGHT technology is unique in that it can be adapted safely and
comfortably into almost any work environment. Enhancing performance during the night shift by regulating
circadian rhythms with light management will be useful for a wide variety of 24/7 operations.
Understandings gained in the trials on the 105 Day Mars Mission with the Sunnex Biotechnologies Lo-LIGHT
should benefit many night shift workers, especially those working in positions where alertness during the
night shift is essential. This includes first responders, medical staff in hospitals, air traffic controllers,
power plant and resource plant control room operators, as well as people working in the transportation industry
and conducting military operations.
Note: Much of the information on this page is taken from the NSBRI press release and web site. See
105-Day Mars Simulation:
U.S. Studies Focus on Improving Work Performance
and Summary of Light Study to improve alertness, performance, and mood during the night shift .
