Mission: Control the Spread Panel Copy NASA’s skills in science and experience working with partners has been key to its innovations solving problems presented by the pandemic. Panel 1 NASA INNOVATES Challenges can lead to new ideas. Background image: galaxy Arp273Main_HubblePestana_3079 NASA is helping with the response to COVID-19 COVID-19 CHALLENGE: INVISIBLE INVADER A virus is a tiny bundle of DNA molecules surrounded by a protective shell of fat. The DNA molecules in the virus carry genetic code. The code provides instructions that tell a cell what to make and when to make it. A virus grows only inside the cells of a host. A host can be an animal, plant, or person. A virus breaks into a cell and takes control of it. It changes the cell’s genetic code. It converts healthy cells into invader and multiplier cells. This is how the virus spreads through the body and makes people sick. NASA MIMICS VIRUS WITH SUPERCOMPUTERS Researchers zoom in to the carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, and hydrogen atoms that make up the molecules of the virus. Supercomputers at NASA Ames Research Center in California mimic the behavior of virus molecules to help understand how the virus infects cells. Researchers can use this information to select and make drugs that may treat the infection. Image: pleiades_2015_system_photo_1 Pop up facts Viruses are relatively fragile. They are protected by a thin outer layer of fat that can be dissolved with lather from regular soap. That’s why you have to rub for 20 seconds or more, to make a lot of bubbles. Panel 2 NASA meatball: NASA INNOVATES Challenges can lead to new ideas. Background image: COVID-19 stock image COVID-19 CHALLENGE: INFECTS THROUGH RESPIRATORY The virus that causes COVID-19 is absorbed by the cells in the respiratory system through the eyes, nose, and mouth. Researchers found people touch their face an average of 16 times an hour. Touching your face can increase your risk of infection with a virus and especially COVID-19. Image: JPL Pulse DONT TOUCH YOUR FACE To help people reduce how many times they touch their face, a team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) in California designed the Pulse pendant. A tiny motor inside the pendant pulses, or vibrates, when a sensor detects movement near the face. Astronaut advice pop-ups Astronauts spend months in space, isolated from in-person contact with family and friends— essentially social-distancing. Canadian Space Agency’s Chris Hadfield’s advice for getting through it is to seek out credible sources to help you understand the risks you face. He adds, "Start doing things. They don't have to be the things that you always did before," Hadfield says. "It's a chance to do something different." Image: hadfield A--Gm2HCMAIc0P7 Pop up facts COVID-19 cannot go through healthy skin. Moisturize dry hands because viruses can hide in the micro cracks. The thicker the moisturizer, the better. Stay at least 6 feet (2 m) away from people who don’t live with you. Panel 3 NASA INNOVATES Challenges can lead to new ideas NASA is helping with the response to COVID-19. Background image: NASA meatball COVID-19 CHALLENGE: VENTILATOR SHORTAGE COVID-19 results in an infection that may make it hard to breathe. Some people infected with the virus need breathing machines and some hospitals may not have enough ventilators for everyone who needs them. Image: respiratory system 1C-Respiratory-System The eyes, nose, and mouth in our body are connected to the respiratory system. That’s the network of organs and tissues that help us breathe. A SIMPLER BREATHING MACHINE Engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California (JPL), where Mars rovers were built, designed a special breathing machine, called Ventilator Intervention Technology Accessible Locally (VITAL). VITAL is for patients who don’t need all the features of a traditional ventilator. It’s a simpler version of a complicated breathing machine, so it can be built faster and maintained more easily than a traditional ventilator. It is made with fewer parts, so it also costs less. BREATHING SPACE The NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center in California partnered with hospitals and companies to help solve ventilator shortages. They made a breathing helmet. It’s a hood to treat minor symptoms so ventilators can be saved for patients with more severe trouble breathing. The helmet uses a hose and nosepiece to deliver steady air pressure, similar to a CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) device, to get oxygen into the lungs. Image: Buttigieg NASA engineer Mike Buttigieg tests the breathing helmet he developed to help treat COVID-19 patients with mild breathing symptoms. Pop up facts Once in the body, COVID-19 interacts with a person’s body and can lead to vastly different outcomes. Some people infected with COVID-19 have mild cases with few or no symptoms. Others suffer severe illness. Panel 4 Mission: Control the Spread Background image: COVID-19 stock image NASA’s skills in science and experience working with partners has been key to its innovations solving problems presented by the pandemic. NASA COMES CLEAN The air we breathe has two oxygen atoms. Single oxygen atoms found high in the atmosphere can be destructive for spacecraft, so NASA is very familiar with this type of oxygen. Scientists at NASA Glenn Research Center in Ohio used this knowledge and experience to help make a mist that uses single oxygen atoms to break down bacteria and viruses. The mist is sprayed by a device called AMBUstat. It is small, portable, and affordable. It can clean small spaces like ambulances in under an hour at a fraction of the cost of other cleaning methods. Image: Ambustat Sidebar NOT ALL MICROBES ARE CREATED EQUAL Viruses are sometimes confused with bacteria. Bacteria and viruses are both microscopic, but they're very different. VIRUSES BACTERIA LIVING? not technically yes REPRODUCTION need host on its own SIZE tiny, no cells complex, single-celled SETTING needs host cell diverse, even extreme EFFECT harmful some are healthy INFECTION systemic/can affect entire body localized Astronaut advice pop-ups Astronauts spend months in space, isolated from in-person contact with family and friends— essentially social-distancing. Anne McClain, who spent several months on the International Space Station, shares some of what she calls “expeditionary behavior” skills. “Take action to mitigate your own stress or negativity (don't pass it on to the group),” she advises "… Seek feedback. Balance work, rest, and personal time. Be organized.” To McClain, cooperation should always outshine competition. “ Keep calm in conflict,” she says. Image: McClain 33611131908_027d10af88_o Pop up facts Use alcohol or any mixture with alcohol over 65%, including mouthwash, to dissolve the fat shell of a virus. Panel 5 Mission: Control the Spread Background image: Earth from space NASA’s experience working with partners led to innovations tracking the pandemic. COVID-19 CHALLENGE: ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS The global reaction to the pandemic has impacted social behavior and the environment around us. Scientists and world leaders want to know how the global response to the pandemic is affecting the planet’s environment and economy. TRACKING THE VIRUS FROM SPACE Changes resulting from the global reaction to the pandemic can actually be detected by satellites in orbit around the Earth. NASA, ESA (European Space Agency), and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) are working together to make the information easy to access. The COVID-19 Earth Observation Dashboard tracks changes in air and water quality, climate, economic activity, and agriculture. Image: satellite 738537main_mopitt-EOSAM1_2 Pop up facts Ultraviolet light in sunlight breaks down the virus. A mask can be hung in the sun to disinfect and reuse. Be sure the light hits all mask surfaces. Don’t shake clothing, sheets or towels used by an infected person. Virus molecules can float in the air and enter your nose. Panel 6 Mission: Control the Spread Background image: ISS Since the COVID-19 outbreak, astronauts follow The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations in addition to their usual health routines. NO SICK DAYS Astronauts don’t get sick days in space. If an astronaut was sick in space an important experiment may be put at risk or mission goals may not be completed. For example, if an astronaut can’t clear their ears due to congestion from a cold, a spacewalk would not be allowed. If an astronaut became seriously ill in space, they may not be able to come back to Earth right away, possibly leading to more complications. If the sick astronaut and other crew did return to Earth, the mission would be canceled. Image: stro 15834368051_836044b573_o QUARANTINE IS NOT NEW FOR ASTRONAUTS NASA has been quarantining astronauts since the early days of crewed spaceflight. Crew quarantine for two weeks before they go to space. They don't have in-person contact with anyone who has not been cleared by NASA flight doctors. Isolation prevents illnesses from happening in space. Quarantine works! Aside from space sickness, which is similar to motion sickness, no astronaut has gotten sick in space during shuttle or International Space Station (ISS) missions. PRE-LAUNCH CHECKUPS Astronauts usually have a physical exam called the “L-10” 10 days before launch. It includes lab tests for bacterial and viral infections. Crew undergo a second exam as launch day approaches, and are given a brief medical check just before they put on spacesuits on launch day. Anyone who is sick or not feeling well is not allowed to see or work with the crew. Cargo and supplies headed to space go through safety certification also to prevent any harmful microbes from spreading to the crew.