Maintaining Health, Safety and Cognitive Function Under Challenging Environmental and Working Conditions

Humans have always aspired to occupy niches, both spatial and temporal. We have illuminated the night and started working around the clock, we have conquered the skies and explored space, and we are connected on a global scale never seen before. As a consequence, our lives and work conditions have become more challenging in many ways, with sleep and biological rhythms tested by irregular working hours, night and rotational shift work. These temporal challenges often result in short sleep and disrupted circadian rhythms threatening health and safety, especially in operational settings where impaired health and cognitive performance can be potentially fatal.

While associated risks to health and safety are well-documented, the goal of this Research Topic is to shift the focus to potential solutions and gather novel findings on how to stay healthy and maintain performance under challenging environmental and working conditions.

Of particular interest are works in the following areas:
- Strategies to improve/maintain health and safety in temporally challenging environments and working conditions, such as shift/night work, irregular/flexible work hours, home office.
- Strategies to improve/maintain cognitive performance, fatigue, and duty-readiness in challenging operational environments, such as spaceflight, aviation, emergency/rescue services, hospitals, maritime and military operations.
- The role of individual factors in maintaining health, safety, and cognitive function under challenging environmental and working conditions.