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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Stuart Greer

You can get paid £14,000 by NASA to lie in bed for two months

Imagine someone offering you £14,000 to spend two months in bed.

Sounds like a dream right?

Well, the opportunity has arrived, thanks to NASA.

The Amercian space agency is running a joint study with the European Space Agency to test how space flight affects the human body and needs volunteers.

The 24 men and women will have to spend the whole time lying down in a special cot bed, which is tilted so the legs are slightly higher than the head. 

This aims to mimic the effects of microgravity experienced by astronauts. 

Successful applicants will need to do everything lying down including eating and going to the toilet. 

Don't worry about getting bored though, there plenty of entertainment like TV and books to keep you occupied. 

There will also be opportunities to do online courses or learn new skills. 

But there's a catch. 

To take part you'll need to be able to speak German, because the study - known as AGBRESA (Artificial Gravity Bed Rest Study) will take place at the German Aerospace Centre in Cologne. 

Lead scientist Dr Edwin Mulder, from the DLR Institute of Aerospace Medicine, said: "For the first time the use of artificial gravity as a possible means of preventing the negative effects of weightlessness on the human body will be investigated. 

"Effective countermeasures against bone and muscle atrophy must be developed if astronauts are to live for long periods of time in space or on the Moon and Mars." 

Hansjörg Dittus, DLR Executive Board Member for Space Research and Technology, added: "Crewed spaceflight will continue to be important in the future in order to carry out experiments in microgravity, but we must make it as safe as possible for the astronauts."

A first cohort of volunteers started their long-term bed-rest this week. 

Scientists are now looking for a second group to arrive in September. 

Applications close on May 24 and can be made here .

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