ABSTRACT
The present paper describes a new method for the recording and analysis of human body postures under water in simulated microgravity. Experiments with a sample of 69 subjects were carried out aimed at exploring the motion behaviour and particularly the neutral postures spontaneously assumed by the body when specific motion tasks are absent. Three levels of data analysis are applied: visual analysis of the footage, a graphical overlay method for selected two-dimensional (2D) pictures and the detailed three-dimensional (3D) study of postures utilizing an individually adapted virtual man model. Examples of applications of these approaches are presented. The first results presented here seem to indicate the existence of an intraindividually stable, replicable and virtually constant neutral posture for each subject.
