 Imagine flying aboard the space shuttle. The main engines fire, then with a powerful jolt, the solid rocket motors ignite. The acceleration and intense pull of gravity during ascent is tremendous. But when the main engines cut off and the shuttle reaches low Earth orbit, the crew enters a totally new environment. Everything floats. There is no up or down. And for 70% of first-time spacefairs, the initial couple of days in orbit means they will feel ill. Microgravity disturbs the workings of the inner ear, much the way car or air travel can affect people on Earth. Responding to this need, scientists have been developing a pre-flight adaptation trainer for astronauts to use before they fly. The Neurosciences Laboratory at NASA's Johnson Space Center is responsible for studying the human body's condition in space. Understanding gait, posture, and other adaptable functions helps scientists stay in touch with human space travel needs. Shuttle missions typically last up to 10 days, but future space station visits and long-range lunar or Martian outposts will mean months or maybe years of space living. Neuroscientist Dr. Deborah Harm. What we're trying to do here is to develop equipment and hardware and software that will allow us to present potential space travelers with a set of sensory conditions as similar to what they will experience in flight as we can get them. The subject is strapped inside a spherical trainer. Large overhead projectors display a montage of computer-generated patterns that fill the person's field of view. It is the movement of these patterns that eventually fools the subject into thinking that he is new, not the visual. So the scene is not moving at all. Two-way communication allows them to describe their experience and for Dr. Harm to request different herd movements. Once exposed to a variety of pre-programmed visual cues, the brain recalibrates itself to accept what is similar to a weightless environment. Training in the pre-flight adaptation trainer will reduce the intensity and the time that it takes them to adapt to microgravity and reduce the intensity and the duration of the symptoms, motion sickness symptoms. The human body is essentially plastic, meaning that it is capable of conforming to any environment, even space. When members of the Skylab 4 crew return to Earth after nearly three months in orbit, their first steps were tenuous. They did re-adapt, but it took time. Today, many astronauts coming back from space undergo evaluations so that researchers can better understand this process. In the next decade, this research will be critical in better preparing astronauts for long-term commitment to space.