Chair, Spacelab MVI Experiments, STS-42

This chair was used for a set of experiments flown on the Space Shuttle during the STS-42 flight in 1992, the first International Microgravity Laboratory mission. An astronaut seated in this chair could be rotated upright, sideways, or lying down while eye movements and other sensations were recorded.

Scientists studying the human response to weightlessness are interested in the sensory systems that govern balance and orientation, particularly the responses of the eyes and the vestibular organs in the inner ear when a person is in motion. Doing motion experiments in space helps researchers understand how physical responses that normally are influenced by gravity behave in microgravity and how astronauts adapt to spaceflight. NASA transferred this Microgravity Vestibular Investigations equipment to the Museum when it was no longer needed for research.