Here's a question. Were the astronauts in POTA really in Suspended Animation or were they in some kind of induced medical coma?

I ask this because they continues to age as shown by their growing beards. If they were in Suspended Animation shouldn't that not have happened?

--- In pota@yahoogroups.com, "Terry Hoknes" <hoknescards@...> wrote:
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> Good question
> i'm not sure if the concept ever happened in
> Star Trek or Doctor Who or Lost In Space back in the 60s
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> It would seem to me that maybe that was the only way they could comprehend a way for humans to make a long journey - not sure what other options there could be
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> An off-topic question would be what else did POTA do that was innovative for a sci-fi movie that had not been done with other 60s sci-fi films?
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> I think we should work on a 60's index of sci-fi movies
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> POTA and 2001 came out at about the same time, and both relied upon the technique of deep sleep to accomplish long space travels. I saw them both at a drive-in back then. I can't remember films using hibernation before that, but then, I was about 8 years old. Does anyone know when hibernation debuted as a sci-fi film phenomenon?
> FF
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