NZ Uni researches dry eye in space

An ophthalmologist from the University of Otago in New Zealand has gone to the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere to research how eyes were affected by microgravity.

Dr Francesc March has particularly looked at dry eye disease because around 30% of astronauts experienced symptoms during long-term space missions.

‘Our research is the first to investigate the disease in space-like conditions. We use parabolic flights, which create short periods of microgravity through precise flight patterns, as a precursor to orbit-based research,’ Dr March said. 

He added that understanding dry eye in space would protect astronauts’ eye health as well as offering insight into the mechanisms of the disease on Earth.