Poor eyesight is a barrier for long-term space missions. So what causes it?

A recent study suggests that poor eyesight is one of the key barriers for humans on long-duration space explorations, but new technology like virtual reality and artificial intelligence could help test astronauts' eyesight while in space and come up with solutions to this problem.

When astronauts are in space for long periods of time, the impact of no gravity can weigh on their bodies, including their eyes.

Often when they return to Earth, their vision is worse than before, which can sometimes be irreversible. This can cause them issues not just in the long term, but also for completing tasks in space.

A recent study suggests that poor eyesight is one of the key barriers for humans on long-duration space explorations, including the Artemis mission to eventually send humans to Mars, but new technology like virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) could help test astronauts' eyesight while in space and come up with solutions to the problem.

The study’s authors, Ethan Waisberg, a Canadian and academic foundation doctor at Cambridge University, and Joshua Ong, a resident physician in ophthalmology at the University of Michigan, have introduced a pair of VR goggles to conduct eye tests and are optimizing AI technology to better understand the experiences of astronauts.

Ong said they hope to find the root cause of spaceflight associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS), which is the umbrella term for multiple eyesight issues astronauts can face.

"We want to further understand why SANS occurs, because right now, even though it's one of the largest physiological barriers to spaceflight, we actually don't know the (reason)," Ong told CTVNews.ca in an interview.

Published in the Nature Partner Journal of Microgravity on June 27, the study explains that an astronaut's eyes will adjust in space, but after a long period of time, changes to their vision could be irreversible.