The use of a syncytium model of the crystalline lens of the human eye to study the light flashes seen by astronauts

Abstract

A syncytium model to study some electrical properties of the eye is proposed in the attempt to explain the phenomenon of anomalous Light Flashes (LF) perceived by astronauts in orbit. The crystalline lens is modelled as an ellipsoidal syncytium having a variable relative dielectric constant. The mathematical model proposed is given by a boundary value problem for a system of two coupled elliptic partial differential equations in two unknowns. We use a numerical method to compute an approximate solution of this mathematical model and we show some numerical results that provide a possible (qualitative) explanation of the observed LF phenomenon. In particular, we calculate the energy lost in the syncytium by a cosmic charged particle that goes through the syncytium and compare the results with those obtained using the Geant 3.21 simulation program. We study the interaction antimatter-syncytium. We use the Creme96 computer program to evaluate the cosmic ray fluxes encountered by the International Space Station.