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This pilot study explored the effectiveness of local wrist warming as a potential countermeasure for providing finger comfort during extended duration EVA. Four subjects (3 males and 1 female) were evaluated in three different experimental conditions. Two additional body surface and wrist thermal conditions were evaluated on a smaller number of subjects. Wrist warming significantly increased finger temperature in ambient temperature. A clear positive effect to the fingers was evident when total body heat deficit was 30% of basal metabolic heat production in resting conditions. These initial findings indicate that wrist warming has considerable potential for increasing astronaut comfort during EVA while decreasing power requirements.

The potential of controlling human body thermal status through monitoring temperature and heat flux indices of the fingers was evaluated. A cooling/warming suit was used that provided a range of uniform and nonuniform temperature regimes on the body surface. Temperature changes on the skin surface changed body comfort significantly but did not affect core temperature. However, under different imposed thermal conditions, peripheral temperature, particularly the fingers, closely followed the thermal conditions either within or on the surface of the body. The fingers appear to have considerable potential as a key site in developing an automatic thermal feedback system in the EVA suit.

A new methodological tool was developed consisting of a patchwork thermal cool/warm grid with great flexibility to manipulate the temperature on different areas of the body. Through conflicting temperatures on the body surface, it is possible to direct heat current to different distal or proximal areas. The effectiveness of the use of a cooled hood, gloves, socks on the overheated body was evaluated as countermeasures for balancing heat exchange. Temperature in the magistral vessels was the main source of information for understanding the mechanism of the relationship between core and shell, and shell and distal parts of the limb.