NASA and two other space agencies are asking for 24 volunteers to lie in bed for two months as part of a study. The pay? About $19,000.
“We are looking for test persons to take part in a bed rest study from September to December 2019 in Cologne (Germany) and spend 60 days lying down,” according to a statement from the German Aerospace Agency, NASA and the European Space Agency.
Applicants must speak German and be between 24 and 55 to apply.
The point of the study is to “research how the body changes in weightlessness. Bed rest simulates this condition,” the statement said. Based on the study results, scientists will develop techniques to reduce the negative effects of weightlessness on astronauts.
During the two months, the volunteers will live in a single room, but will be divided into groups. One group will be rotated around in a centrifuge, similar to an artificial gravity chamber, which will force blood back into their extremities.