Performance of a blood chemistry analyzer during parabolic flight.
We have tested the performance of the VISION System Blood Analyzer, produced by Abbott Laboratories, during parabolic flight on a KC-135 aircraft (NASA 930).  This fully automated instrument performed flawlessly in these trials, demonstrating its potential for efficient, reliable use in a microgravity environment.  In addition to instrument capability, we demonstrated that investigators could readily fill specially modified test packs with fluid during zero gravity, and that filled test packs could be easily loaded into VISION during an episode of microgravity.
Spooner
B S
BS
Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan 66506, USA.
Claassen
D E
DE
Guikema
J A
JA
D000337:Aerospace Medicine; D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000592:standards; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D013026:Space Flight / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D014893:Weightlessness