Michael Najjar

08 September, 2015

Michael Najjar – one of the first test persons to perform jump and vibration training on the next generation DLR centrifuge

In 2014 The Institute of Aerospace Medicine at the German Aerospace Center DLR in Cologne started operating its cutting edge :envihab - Future Research Center for Space and Earth. With this one-of-a-kind, highly sophisticated medical research facility the Institute has taken a step forward in its ground-breaking research into the ways in which people adjust to extreme environments and other stressful situations. One of the :envihab’s key modules is the new Short-Arm Human Centrifuge (SAHC).

This centrifuge provides advanced functional possibilities for hypergravity studies that enable scientists to investigate countermeasures which prevent the development of medical risks induced by a weightlessness environment. As one of the first test persons on the brand new implemented jumping sledge and vibrating platform on the futuristic centrifuge, Michael Najjar undertook a very unusual and highly strenuous training session.

Two key components determine space travel: acceleration (G-forces) and microgravity (weightlessness). The human body is constructed to perform in a gravity environment. When gravity is absent, as it is in space, the human body starts to adapt to weightlessness: bones lose their minerals, muscles atrophy and the cardiovascular system slows down. To guard against such effects, astronauts need to take exercise. Some of the most demanding aspects of a (sub)orbital flight in a spaceship are launch acceleration and re-entry deceleration. The resulting G acceleration can cause a number of neurovestibular and cardiovascular problems while acceleration (G) can be dangerous because of the risk of gravity-induced loss of consciousness (G-LOC). If G-forces exceed a certain level and time, the brain loses its blood supply and exceeds its oxygen reserves. The syndromes a spaceship passenger might experience include loss of peripheral vision, tunnel vision, grayout, blackout, loss of consciousness, and loss of motor control.

In the second part of his training Michael´s physical endurance was stretched to the limit. Compared to a long-arm centrifuge the SAHC has a much higher acceleration gradient which makes the G-forces produced much harder for the human body to handle. After 60 seconds of 4G acceleration with G-forces traveling vertically from head to foot through his body, Michael experienced a blackout. The experimental personal training was performed under strict medical supervision and Michael´s body functions were under real-time control at every moment. What makes this centrifuge unique is its combination of different training modes and the real-time storing and processing of different forces like ground reaction force and kinematic force.

This centrifuge training was part of Michael Najjar´s preparations for his spaceflight and at the same time a performative act forming part of his current “outer space” series. Experience of extreme situations is of deep relevance to Michael’s work as an artist as it enables him to learn more about how his own body and mental perceptions respond to, and are changed by, conditions of extreme duress.

Michael wishes to thank DLR, :envihab, and especially Guido Petrat, Timo Frett, Klaus Müller and Friederike Wütscher for their fantastic support.

The video footage was shot by Dieter Jaufmann.
Technical support by Hasselblad + RED Digital
video // SAHC-training