PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS The
PSYCHOLOGICAL adaptability of humans to spaceflight conditions has been of great interest to the
space programs concerned. Soviet scientists, in particular, studied
psychological matters in some detail during the lengthy occupations of their space stations. Their studies have included preflight crew-compatibility testing, voice stress analysis, and the elaborate psychological support of crews during actual flights. Several stages of psychological adaptation to spaceflight may be elaborated. They include the period of intense and lengthy preflight training and testing; the period of heightened anxiety prior to and during launch; the
approximately monthlong period of adaptation to weightlessness and the establishment of an effective work-rest routine; the following period of midflight depression and fatigue that comes approximately four months into a flight; the anticipation of the flight's end (called "breakaway"), including excitement and uneasiness; the exhilaration and discomfort felt upon first return to Earth; and, finally, reintegration into the setting of family and accustomed routines. In a few casesÑmost notably some of the Apollo astronautsÑcrew members have reassessed their lives and changed direction after spaceflight.