/sci/ - Science & Math

https://www.space.com/spaceflight-enlarge-cavities-astronaut-brains

> The most enduring spaceflight-related changes in the brain yet detected are the way cavities in the brain known as ventricles can enlarge by up to 25%. Ventricles are filled with cerebrospinal fluid, which helps protect, nourish and remove waste from the brain. The absence of a gravitational pull leads the brain to shift upward in the skull and causes the ventricles to expand.

> It remains uncertain what the long-term consequences of this ventricle expansion might be. "How this impacts performance and long-term health is an open question," study senior author Rachael Seidler, a space health researcher at the University of Florida in Gainesville, told Space.com.

> Given the rise in space tourism in recent years, these findings may prove welcome, as shorter space trips appear to cause little physical change to the brain. In addition, the rate of ventricle enlargement tapered off after six months in space, which may also be good news — these changes don't continue to increase over time, Seidler said. "This is important to know for future longer duration missions, such as to Mars," she noted.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ventricular_system
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Human_ventricular_system_-_animation.gif