Space Health Research: How Astronaut Sleep Data Collection Powers New Discoveries

Monitoring sleep is one of the most persistent challenges astronauts face during missions. On-orbit sleep disturbances impact mission safety, performance, and long-term health, making sleep in orbit a vital focus in space health research.

At TrialX, we are contributing to this important area through our space health research and remote data collection tools developed in collaboration with the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH). From the EXPAND Database to the upcoming TrialX GO platform, we are helping researchers gain deeper insight into astronaut sleep, fatigue, and recovery patterns.

Why Is Sleep Difficult in Space?

Astronauts in orbit face unique challenges that disrupt natural sleep cycles. A major factor is the absence of a consistent 24-hour light-dark cycle. On the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts witness a sunrise every 90 minutes. Without environmental cues, the body’s circadian rhythm becomes confused, making it harder to fall and stay asleep.

Microgravity adds another layer of difficulty. Floating makes it challenging to find a comfortable sleeping posture. Cramped quarters, constant equipment noise, and the psychological stress of being in a high-stakes environment further reduce sleep quality.Studies also show that astronauts often sleep less than six hours per night during missions. 

The Link Between Sleep and Astronaut Health: What The Data Reveals

Sleep is foundational to both physical and mental health. For astronauts, poor sleep increases risks related to immune function, cardiovascular health, memory, and decision-making. As human spaceflight missions grow longer and more complex, understanding and improving sleep becomes increasingly important.

Behavioral health in space is now considered a core element of mission planning. Space health research is expanding to include cognitive resilience, mental health, and strategies to mitigate the negative effects of sleep loss.

To support this, sleep research is a core element of space health research on any mission. Data collected by investigators typically includes self-reported sleep duration and quality, actigraphy data from wearable sensors, light exposure levels, fatigue scores, mood and cognitive performance measures, and, in some cases, EEG-based polysomnography recordings. These data points help researchers understand how sleep architecture and circadian rhythms change in space and how environmental factors and workloads impact rest and recovery.

These spaceflight sleep challenges were also explored in our CureTalks conversation with Dr. Mathias Basner, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a leading voice in space sleep science.

In the episode, Dr. Basner discusses why sleep must be both long enough and high quality, how reaction time and vigilance are affected by fragmented sleep, and the limits of wearables versus direct brain activity monitoring in space. He also explains how natural light cycles, behavioral choices, and pharmaceutical use impact astronaut sleep — and touches on cutting-edge research into hibernation-like states and cooling technologies that could one day reshape long-duration missions to Mars.

Here are some interesting insights shared by Dr. Basner: 

• 🧠 What types of sleep are most important, and what are the best ways to measure it?
  
• 🐦 Designing sleep for astronauts: What inspiration can we derive from sleep phenotypes in the wild?
  
• 💡 How do scientists support proper sleep for astronauts?

🎧 Listen to the full CureTalks episode here

How TrialX Supports Space Health Research

We are at the forefront of space health innovation, building tools and platforms that help researchers collect and analyze health data in some of the most extreme environments. Two standout initiatives are the EXPAND Database and the in-development TrialX GO platform.

EXPAND Database: Centralizing Space Health Data

The EXPAND Database was developed in collaboration with the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH). It serves as a centralized platform for collecting and sharing biomedical data from commercial spaceflights, analog missions, and long-duration space expeditions.

Researchers use the EXPAND Database to study trends in astronaut sleep, behavior, and health outcomes. By aggregating de-identified datasets, this tool enables clinical research in space that would otherwise be fragmented. Scientists can explore how sleep patterns evolve in space, evaluate the impact of sleep loss, and design better protocols to support astronaut health. This kind of data centralization is crucial for driving innovation in sleep tracking in space and improving human performance during missions.

TrialX GO: Enabling the Future of Remote Data Collection in Space

TrialX GO is a next-generation mobile health solution currently under development. It is designed to enable remote data collection in offline and low-bandwidth environments, including analog research settings and future space missions.

TrialX GO will allow astronauts or analog crew members to log sleep hours, track fatigue and behavioral changes, and sync health data with Earth-based researchers. This solution will support customized sleep tracking in space and offer a modular design to expand into other areas of health monitoring.

The Broader Impact of Sleep Research in Space and on Earth

Insights gained from astronaut sleep research have direct applications on Earth. Understanding how the human body reacts to disrupted circadian rhythms can help shift workers, frequent flyers, people with insomnia, and those with circadian disorders.

Technologies developed for space, such as wearable sensors and digital sleep logs, are being adapted for clinical trials and public health monitoring. As sleep science evolves through space health research, the benefits will extend to a broader population.

Addressing sleep in space presents a serious challenge with real consequences for safety, mission performance, and the overall health of astronauts. With tools like the EXPAND Database and the forthcoming TrialX GO platform, we are advancing sleep research in ways that reach well beyond space missions.

By helping researchers collect and analyze data in real time, whether in orbit or in remote terrestrial environments, we are expanding what is known about sleep, resilience, and recovery. These efforts are paving the way for innovations that will benefit astronauts and people around the world.

Learn more about our Remote Data Collection Platform and how we are advancing space health research.