ch18

MERCURY PROJECT SUMMARY (NASA SP-45)

18. AEROMEDICAL OBSERVATIONS

By A. D.CATTERSON, M.D., Center Medical Operations Office, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center; E.P. McCUTCHEON,¹ M.D., Center Medical Operations Office, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center; H. A. MINNERS, M.D., Center Medical Operations Office, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center; and R. A. POLLARD, M.D., Center Medical Operations Office, NASA Manned Spacecraft Center

Summary

[299] The results of physiologic measurements and medical studies of Astronaut Cooper made prior to, during, and following his flight as pilot of the spacecraft of the MA-9 mission are presented in this paper. The pilot was in excellent health and in a complete state of mental and physical fitness for his mission on launch morning. The data revealed that all physiologic parameters measured in flight remained within the envelope of normal variability developed for this pilot through extensive monitoring of these same parameters under dynamic circumstances during his participation in training activities as a Mercury astronaut.

Astronaut Cooper withstood the stresses of flight situation with no evidence of degradation of his functional integrity as a pilot. He slept as part of the planned mission activities during his flight and reported that sleep was subjectively normal. Postflight examination of Astronaut Cooper revealed that he had developed dehydration. He exhibited an orthostatic hypotension accompanied by an accelerated pulse response in the postflight examinations. The pulse and blood pressure responses returned to normal while the pilot was sleeping between 9 hours and 19 hours after landing. A reversal of the ratio between neutrophiles and lymphocytes was noted in the peripheral blood at an examination accomplished 4 days after the mission. This lymphocytosis persisted for 2 weeks and subsided spontaneously by June 14, 1963. With respect to all other studies, the medical status of the pilot was found essentially unchanged between the preflight and postflight examinations.

This paper presents the specific results of medical studies of Astronaut Cooper's responses during and after his MA-9 mission in the dual context of a detailed report of the final Mercury mission and an effective summary in its own right of the-medical findings from Project Mercury. The results of the MA-9 mission are an effective summary of the entire program because every observation which was made on pilots during the earlier missions was repeated and qualitatively reconfirmed in the final flight.

At the same time, the medical-data collection program for the last flight was developed on the foundation of knowledge gained from each of the preceding manned space missions. The suitability and the limitations of the Mercury spacecraft environment to meet the requirements of human physiology were better understood with each succeeding flight. Thus, the final flight was approached with a better understanding of the likelihood of a given physiologic response occurring after exposure to the known stresses of a mission profile than had been previously possible. The opportunity for making valid medical observations during the MA-9 mission was further enhanced by the duration of the mission, as well as by the length of participation of Astronaut Cooper in the Mercury program, which provided an invaluable fund of baseline data prior to his actual flight.

Preflight Observation

Data were evaluated from very thorough medical studies of the pilot, Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper, Jr., conducted immediately prior to his selection for astronaut training in 1959 and from annual examinations since that [300] date. Medical examinations were also conducted both before and after six preflight spacecraft checkout tests and a session in the Cape Canaveral procedures trainer, all of which required the pilot to wear the full-pressure space suit. Special examinations to assess the pilot's fitness for flight were conducted 11 and 3 days before launch. The latter examination conducted on May 12,1963, designated the "Comprehensive Medical Evaluation," was conducted by specialists in internal medicine, Ophthalmology, neuropsychiatry, radiology, and aviation medicine. The NASA flight surgeon who had examined the pilot for most of the preflight activities conducted the final preflight medical examination on launch morning. The preflight aeromedical procedures and examination are listed in table 18-I.

Table 18-I. Pilot Preflight Activities

[Selected activities for which medical study or support was performed]

Date	Activity	Medical study or support
January 5	Altitude-chamber spacecraft checkout.	Physical examination before and after. Background data (biosensors).
March 22-23	Hangar flight simulation.	Physical examination before and after. Background data (biosensors).
April 23	Flight simulation no.1	Physical examination. Background data (biosensors). Timed urine collection.
May 4	T-10 day physical examination.	Physical examination, 45 minutes.
May 7	Mission simulation (procedures trainer)	Physical examination before and after. Background data (biosensors). Timed urine collection.
May 8	Launch simulation.	Physical examination before and after. Background data (biosensors). Timed urine collection. Begin controlled diet. Blood specimen, 50cc
May 10	Flight simulation no.3.	Physical examination before and after. Timed urine collection. Background data (biosensors).
May 11	-	Begin low residue diet.
May 12	T-2 day physical examination.	Comprehensive medical examination, 2 1/2 hours Blood (30cc) and urine specimen.
May 14	Countdown (flight canceled).	Physical examination before and after. Blood specimen, 30cc Timed urine collection.
May 15	Flight countdown.	Physical examination Aeromedical countdown Awaken 2:51 a.m. e.s.t. Launch 8:40 a.m. e.s.t.

In addition to examinations by physicians, baseline clinical evaluations included an audiogram, an electrocardiogram, a chest X-ray, and laboratory studies of blood and urine. The results of these evaluations are found in tables 18-II to 18-V. For the 3 months prior to the flight, the pilot continued in excellent health with no significant abnormalities. In the month prior to flight, he maintained his physical fitness by daily distance running and calisthenics.

Close supervision of the pilot's food intake began 7 days before the planned flight with special preparation of a normal balanced diet. In order to reduce the need for defecation during the mission, a low-residue diet was followed for 4 days before the launch (ref. l). This diet was well tolerated, although the pilot did mention that appetite satisfaction was short-lived following the low-residue meals.

[301] Table 18-II. Pertinent excerpts from clinical examination

Measurement	Preflight, May 15, 1963; 3:55 to 4:11 a.m. e.s.t.	Postflight (U.S.S. Kearsarge) May 16, 1963; 7:15 to 7:45 p.m. e.s.t
Temperature (oral), °F	97.4	99.4
Hear rate, beats/min	76	86
Respiration rate, breaths/min	16	16
Blood pressure, left arm, mm Hg	108/76 supine 122/82 standing	90/80 supine
Nude weight (bladder empty), lb	147	139 1/4
Comments	Alert, cooperative, 2+ erythema at BPMS microphone tape site.	Fatigued and sweating. See text.

Table 18-III. Complete Blood Count. (all times are in e.s.t)

Date	Hematocrit, percent	Hemoglobin, grams/100 ml	Red blood cells, millions/mm³	Platelets /mm³	White blood cells/mm³	Differential blood count: Neutrophiles, percent	Differential blood count: Lymphocytes, percent	Differential blood count: Monocytes, percent	Differential blood count: Eosinophiles, percent	Differential blood count: Basophiles, percent
Sept.4, 1959	46	14.8	5.09	-	5,850	69	29	1	0	1
Mar 4, 1963; 1:40 p.m.	44	14.3	-	284,000	6,800	50	46	2	2	0
May 12, 1963; 5:00 p.m.	43	15.0	4.79	314,000	6,500	60	36	3	1	0
May 16, 1963; 8:55 p.m.	49	16.5	4.80	-	9,200	75	20	5	0	0
May 17, 1963; 9:00 p.m.	43	14.0	4.83	-	5,650	49	42	5	3	1
May 20, 1963; 11:00 a.m.	43	14.7	4.50	230,000	6,000	35	58	5	2	0
May 31, 1963; 3:00 p.m.	43	14.3	-	-	7,700	38	61	1	0	0
June 14, 1963	43	14.2	-	-	5,100	49	47	2	1	1

Table 18-IV. Comparison of typical preflight and postflight urine values.

Date	Period	Source	Specific gravity	pH	Albumen, sugar, acetone, and bile	Microscopic
May 12, 1963	Preflight	Random sample	1.1018	6.0	Negative	Few WBC, no RBC, small amounts of amorphous phosphates and mucus, and one hyaline cast.
May 20, 1963	Postflight	Random sample	1.1019	6.0	Negative	One to 2 WBC/HPF, no RBC, no casts, moderate amount of amorphous phosphates.

[302-303] Table 18-V. Urine Analysis.

Date	Time	Total volume, cc	Specific gravity	Na, mEq/l	K, mEq/l	Ca, mEq/l	Cl, mEq/l	PO₄, mg%	Creatinine, mg%	Comments
Mar. 20, 1963	7:30 a.m. to 9:26 a.m.	184	1.012	141	55	4.15	161	26.7	85	Low residue diet
Mar. 20, 1963	9:26 a.m. to 12:59 a.m.	260	1.013	180	49	16.3	207	42.2	110	-
Mar. 20, 1963	12:59 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.	420	1.014	129	40	10.1	159	56.6	86	-
Mar. 20, 1963	4:45 p.m. to 9:10 p.m.	330	1.015	125	38	8.7	111	73	111	-
Mar. 21, 1963	9:10 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.	340	1.012	137	17	7.5	100	58.3	102	-
Mar. 21, 1963	1:00 a.m. to 7:52 a.m.	830	1.005	79	14	5.0	79	31.4	62	-
Mar. 21, 1963	7:52 a.m. to 12:46 p.m.	470	1.011	143	42	10.3	174	26.6	94	-
Mar. 21, 1963	12:46 p.m. to 5:28 p.m.	286	1.017	179	54	16.85	210	74.3	125	-
Mar. 21, 1963	5:28 p.m. to 11:35 p.m.	600	1.015	189	41	7.6	178	48	105	-
Mar. 22, 1963	11:35 p.m. to 3:26 a.m.	210	1.015	239	31	10.6	163	54	-	-
Mar. 22, 1963	3:26 a.m. to 5:36 a.m.	110	1.018	216	34	25.5	165	55	-	-
Mar. 22, 1963	5:36 a.m. to 10:47 a.m.	255	1.018	154	38	21.3	142	54	134	-
Mar. 22, 1963	10:47 a.m. to 6:35 p.m.	300	1.020	116	47	20.85	86	135	152	Before hangar simulated flight.
Mar. 23, 1963	6:35 p.m. to 1:20 a.m.	360	1.023	131	51	18.9	119	75.4	142	During hangar simulated flight.
Apr. 23, 1963	6:00 a.m. to 6:50 a.m.	32	-	196	58	7.75	158	146	144	Simulated flight no.1 (before)
Apr. 23, 1963	6:50 a.m. to 12:35 p.m.	394	1.020	226	85	3.04	220	70.8	106	Simulated flight no.1 (during)
Apr. 23, 1963	12:35 p.m. to 5:08 p.m.	122	1.022	195	51	5.95	187	68.6	98	Simulated flight no.1 (after)
Apr. 25, 1963	Unknown to 11:35 a.m.	170	1.020	192	83	6.3	212	18.7	107	Simulated flight no.2 (before)
Apr. 25, 1963	11:35 a.m. to 4:28 p.m.	134	1.024	242	40	5.75	226	35.4	104	Simulated flight no.2 (during)
Apr. 25, 1963	4:28 p.m. to 5:55 p.m.	308	1.018	250	44	3.40	234	46.1	107	Simulated flight no.2 (after)
May 7, 1963	6:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.	64	1.020	115	56	13.9	198	103	152	Procedures trainer (before).
May 7, 1963	8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.	480	1.014	124	60	5.65	146	63.6	88	Procedures trainer (during).
May 8, 1963	9:15 a.m. to 1:40 p.m.	540	1.012	137	79	7.4	166	41.6	74	Launch simulation (during).
May 8, 1963	1:40 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.	360	1.012	137	53	3.2	125	43	104	Launch simulation (after).
May 10, 1963	7:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.	180	1.023	148	85	17.8	176	45.7	130	Simulated flight no.3 (before)
May 10, 1963	11:45 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.	170	1.025	198	72	20.7	219	76	114	Simulated flight no.3 (before)
May 10, 1963	2:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.	320	1.023	181	83	13.4	201	97	115	Simulated flight no.3 (during)
May 10, 1963	6:30 p.m. to 10:05 p.m.	80	1.026	200	71	6.9	165	148	139	Simulated flight no.3 (after)
May 13, 1963	6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.	440	1.025	177	54	19.95	165	128	137	Before canceled flight.
May 14, 1963	9:00 p.m. to 2:50 a.m.	225	1.024	165	32	10.0	107	161	152	Before canceled flight.
May 14, 1963	2:50 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.	680	1.012	120	49	5.6	128	12.6	56	Collection device-canceled flight.
May 14, 1963	7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.	315	1.015	98	50	5.85	109	34	104	After canceled flight.
May 15, 1963	10:00 p.m. to 2:52 a.m.	178	1.028	112	34	23.4	73	214	162	Preflight.
May 15, 1963	2:52 a.m. to 3:55 a.m.	25	1.025	98	48	12.4	89	185	165	Preflight.
May 15, 1963	3:55 a.m. to 7:56 a.m.	177	-	184	68	8.25	212	33.8	125	Preflight (pad) bag no.1
May 15, 1963	7:56 a.m. to 12:29 p.m.	195	-	213	69	14.1	236	28.4	131	Inflight bag no.2
May 15, 1963	12:29 p.m. to 10:09 p.m.	314	-	197	56	12.6	188	130	154	Inflight bag no.3
May 16, 1963	10:09 p.m. to 7:15 a.m.	333	-	120	38	17.7	128	125	169	Inflight bag no.4
May 16, 1963	7:15 a.m. to 1:14 p.m.	107	1.026	137	41	15.6	150	136	170.8	Collection device.
May 16, 1963	1:14 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.	70	1.031	107	96	16.4	126	240	177	1st voided sample.
May 17, 1963	9:30 p.m. to 1:05 p.m.	475	1.026	41	62	20.95	29	149	148	2nd voided sample.
May 17, 1963	1:05 p.m. to 9:12 p.m.	315	1.020	29	54	24.3	59	68.5	148	3rd voided sample.
May 18, 1963	9:12 p.m. to 12:00 p.m.	605	1.023	29	70	17.4	41	114	139	4th voided sample.
May 20, 1963	8:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.	-	1.019	125	92	15.2	150	68	110	4 days after recovery (physical exam Patrick AFB)

[304] The results of the final prelaunch examination revealed a healthy pilot who was ready for the mission. Two minor discrepancies were local skin erythema at the biosensor sites and moderate erythema, edema, and tenderness of the skin over the right sacral prominence. He frequently demonstrates a skin reaction around the sensors for 24 to 36 hours after application, despite the use of microporous surgical tape for fastening these sensors. It should be noted that these sensors were in place for 7 hours during the canceled launch on the preceding day. The skin findings over the sacrum are frequently present following prolonged periods of 4 or more hours on his back in the couch.

On the night before the postponed launch of May 14, 1963, the pilot slept well for about 2 hours and then dozed restlessly for another 3 1/2 hours. However, on the night before the successful launch, he slept well for 6 hours. Although he did become sleepy during periods of relative inactivity, such as the period spent in the transfer van, he felt adequately rested on launch morning. At no time was a drug administered to induce sleep.

The sources of detailed preflight physiologic data are outlined in tables 18-VI to 18-IX. These sources include dynamic tests for evaluation of general physical condition, Mercury Atlas three-orbital pass simulations, and Mercury-Atlas acceleration profiles conducted at the U.S. Naval Aviation Medical Acceleration Laboratory (AMAL) in Johnsville, Pa., and various spacecraft checkout procedures required during the final stages of preparation for flight.

The procedures which were monitored resulted in the largest number of total hours of observation yet available for any one astronaut. This extensive monitoring, was possible as a result of his activity as the MA-8 backup pilot and of his participation in three altitude-chamber spacecraft-checkout procedures, including the longest such test conducted at Cape Canaveral.

The pilot-safety monitoring and data-gathering biosensor system for this mission consisted of two sets of electrocardiographic (ECG) leads, the impedance pneumograph, an oral temperature thermistor, and the blood-pressure measuring system (BPMS). The details of operation of the biosensor system have been described in references 1 to 3. Because of the increased duration of the MA-9 flight, a change was made from continuous rectal to intermittent oral body temperature measurement. The basic thermistor was retained. The thermistor and its lead wires remained within the suit. The sensor was attached to the right ear muff inside the helmet where it was readily accessible The sensor and its location are illustrated in figures 18-1 and 18-2. It thereby provided an indication of suit-outlet temperature whenever an oral temperature was not being taken. When oral temperature was desired, the pilot placed the small thermistor under his tongue for about 5 minutes. Preflight body temperatures were all within the normal range. The remainder of the biosensor system was the same as that used for the MA-8 mission (ref. 1).

Figure 18-1. Oral temperature probe.

space helmut with oral probe located next to right ear pad

Figure 18-2. Installation of oral temperature probe in helmet.

Preflight biosensor preparation included careful calibration of the system so that accurate, repeatable determinations were assured . Adjustments were required to compensate for individual variations. This requirement was especially true for the blood-pressure measuring system. The clinical blood-pressure mean

[305] Table 18-VI. Detailed preflight heart-rate and respiration-rate data.

Date	Procedure	Duration of observation, hr:min	Mean Heart rate, beats/min	Mean Respiration rate, breaths/min	Heart rate Number of values	Heart rate ±2 standard deviations, beats/min	Heart rate Minimum	Heart rate Maximum	Respiration rate Minimum	Respiration rate Maximum
Date	Procedure	Duration of observation, hr:min	Mean Heart rate, beats/min	Mean Respiration rate, breaths/min	Heart rate Number of values	Heart rate ±2 standard deviations, beats/min	Heart rate Minimum	Heart rate Maximum	Respiration rate Minimum	Respiration rate Maximum	Respiration rate Number of values	Respiration rate ±2 standard deviations, breaths/min
February 1959	Lovelace Clinic exercise tolerance test.	^a0:14	-	-	(^b)	-	-	185	(^b)	-	-	-
Sept.28, 1961, and Mar. 28, 1963	Mercury-Atlas Centrifuge dynamic simulations.	4:18	83	(^b)	177	57 to 109	58	151	(^b)	-	-	-
Apr. 13, 1962	Altitude chamber spacecraft checkout	10:29	79	18	161	54 to 104	60	129	117	11 to 25	12	28
July 23, 1962	Altitude chamber spacecraft checkout	7:33	64	19	111	49 to 79	46	92	111	14 to 24	13	26
Jan. 5, 1963	Altitude chamber spacecraft checkout	6:17	74	17	20,000	56 to 92	56	102	123	10 to 24	10	26
Mar. 23, 1963	Hangar flight simulation	2:00	64	19	4,254	51 to 77	55	106	44	8 to 30	13	41
Apr. 23, 1963	Flight simulation no.1	3:40	71	19	75	56 to 86	51	92	75	14 to 24	13	28
May 7, 1963	Mission simulation (procedures trainer).	5:22	71	(^b)	103	50 to 92	50	102	(^b)	-	-	-
May 8, 1963	Launch simulation	4:48	72	20	17,232	54 to 90	52	107	94	13 to 27	11	28
May 10, 1963	Flight simulation No.3	3:30	62	19	67	39 to 85	48	96	67	13 to 25	10	26
May 14, 1963	Launch countdown (canceled)	5:41	71	20	19,666	53 to 89	47	132	96	14 to 26	14	30
May 15, 1963	Launch countdown	2:31	73	16	9,010	48 to 98	51	104	50	10 to 22	10	24

Duration determined by the maximum heart rate.
Not recorded.

[306] Table 18- VII. Summary of Hear-rate and respiration-rate data.

Preflight

Date	Procedure	Duration of observation, hr:min	Overall mean Heart rate, beats/min	Overall mean Respiration rate, breaths/min	Range of mean rates Heart rate, beats/min	Range of mean rates Respiration rate, breaths/min	Range of ±2 standard deviations Heart rate, beats/min	Range of ±2 standard deviations Respiration rate, breaths/min
September 1961 to May 15, 1963.	Centrifuge simulations and checkout procedures	56:23	72	19	62 to 83	16 to 20	39 to 104	8 to 30

Inflight

Date	Procedure	Duration of observation, hr:min	Mean Heart rate, beats/min	Mean Respiration rate, breaths/min	Heart rate Number of values	Heart rate ±2 standard deviations, beats/min	Heart rate Range, beats/min	Respiration rateNumber of values	Respiration rate±2 standard deviations, beats/min	Respiration rateRange, beats/min
May 15 and May 16, 1963.	Orbital flight	34:16	89	15	76,174	62 to 116	55 to 180	151	5 to 25	6 to 28

Postflight

Date	Procedure	Duration of observation, hr:min	Mean Heart rate, beats/min	Mean Respiration rate, breaths/min	Heart rate Number of values	Heart rate ±2 standard deviations, beats/min	Heart rate Range, beats/min	Respiration rateNumber of values	Respiration rate±2 standard deviations, beats/min	Respiration rateRange, beats/min
May 16 and May 17, 1963.	Physical examinations.	(a)	77	16	4	72 to 82	56 to 88	1	(^b)	-

Not determined, not time critical.
Not applicable.

[307] Table 18-VIII. Detailed preflight blood-pressure data.

Preflight, clinical

Date	Procedure	Duration	Mean blood pressure, mm Hg	Systole Number of values	Systole Range, mm Hg	Diastole Number of values	Diastole Range, mm Hg	Mean pulse pressure, mm Hg
February 1959	Lovelace Clinic exercise tolerance test	00:14	a 174/86	-	-	-	-	-
March 1959	Aeronautical Systems Division dynamic tests:	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
	Cold pressor	(^b)	105/74	13	100 to 112	13	70 to 82	31
	Tilt	(^b)	109/75	30	92 to 138	30	68 to 88	34
	Treadmill	(^b)	134/87	18	110 to 156	18	80 to 100	47
September 1959	Lackland USAF Hospital physical examination	(^b)	113/70	4	110 to 116	4	68 to 72	42
April 1962	Physical examinations	(^b)	100/80	5	88 to 108	5	72 to 88	20
July 1962	Special BPMS test	(^b)	116/78	58	102 to 124	58	64 to 84	39
July 23, 1962	Physical examinations	(^b)	103/79	16	98 to 106	16	73 to 82	25
March 12, 1963	Physical examinations	(^b)	108/72	4	98 to 118	4	68 to 78	37
Apr. 23, 1963 to May 15, 1963	Physical examinations during final preflight checkout period.	(^b)	115/78	8	105 to 120	8	72 to 82	37

Preflight,
blood pressure measuring system.

Date	Procedure	Duration	Mean blood pressure, mm Hg	Systole Number of values	Systole Range, mm Hg	Diastole Number of values	Diastole Range, mm Hg	Mean pulse pressure, mm Hg
Sept. 12, 1961	Mercury-Atlas centrifuge dynamic simulation	2:23	114/85	12	103 to 144	12	66 to 98	29
Apr. 13, 1962	Altitude-chamber spacecraft checkout	10:29	134/91	10	128 to 148	10	70 to 124	43
July 10 and July 23, 1962	BPMS calibration	3:00	110/79	73	96 to 128	69	63 to 88

Preflight

Inflight

Postflight

Preflight, clinical

Preflight, blood pressure measuring system.

Preflight,
blood pressure measuring system.