Three astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) returned to Earth. Russians Mikhail Kornienko accompanied and Sergei Volkov, the US commander Scott Kelly regained land and gravity in the steppes of Kazakhstan, Wednesday, March 2, after 340 days in space. But the experiment is far from over for him. The data collected throughout this year to the ISS must still be completed and analyzed to better understand the effects of zero gravity on the human body during long space travel. ultimate goal: Mars!
francetv info explains what awaits particularly American Scott Kelly, but his brother Mark, a retired astronaut, remained on Earth.
tests, still testing
no, Scott Kelly has not spent a year juggling fruit and photographing our planet from its window, unlike that suggests her – beautiful. – Instagram wire
Its mission is called “Year in space”, but it takes place in three years, according to NASA (English) . She began a year before his departure. body fluid samples (blood, saliva, urine, feces …) were taken. And Scott Kelly will have to undergo these tests for at least a year after his return to Earth. In space, the astronauts had to load itself to collect the samples, regularly. It is the same for any a battery of tests and medical examinations intended to study the long term effects of microgravity on the human body.
While pursuing these post-landing tests, researchers will also analyze the data collected during his stay in space. They want to know exactly how zero gravity atrophy muscles and weakens bones, substantially less stressed than on Earth. Saliva, urine and faeces collected can help them understand the effect of a long stay in space on the bacteria that live in the human body, including the digestive system. Intracranial pressure, which can impair vision and alter brain function astronauts, is also studied. And the astronaut will not escape the psychological tests, after 340 days past “in an isolated space and reduced” .
“This knowledge is crucial for NASA that seeks to send even further the human in the solar system “ says the US space agency. Indeed, the trip to Mars could last “500 days or more” , you will have to take place under the best possible conditions. It would be a shame to get tired and depressed on a new planet.
Comparisons with his twin Mark
“You’re getting old slower than your brother, but you’re less muscular than him.” systematic comparisons probably annoy all twins and twins on Earth, but in Kelly, that’s science. At the heart of the mission of the astronaut, the “Twins Study” is to perform the same tests on Scott and his twin, Mark, retired astronaut. A blessing for NASA, which has found the perfect guinea pigs to compare changes that occur in space with those that occur naturally on Earth, in two individuals with identical genetic heritage (fortunately for distinguishing ago Mark mustache).
in fact, NASA is interested in the effect of cosmic rays, particles that circulate in space, on telomeres, DNA portions that are at the ends of chromosomes, such as end caps to prevent their détricotent. Added to other effects of living in the ISS, cosmic rays could accelerate the aging of the body or make it more vulnerable to cancer, explains Quartz (English) .
result: as written by the information site, “Scott Kelly will return to both older and younger than his twin brother” . Older because his body has been exposed to more cosmic rays. Younger because time goes a little slower in the ISS, according to the theory of relativity Einstein (as in the film Interstellar ).
A fitness program
Some effects of microgravity last well beyond the return to Earth, particularly muscle atrophy and skeletal despite daily exercise (at using rubber bands instead of dumbbells). Scott Kelly will therefore have yet to play sports. No question as to go jogging alone in the woods. These efforts will also then measured, to study how the human body is able to recover from such a trip. Research that will also serve to help patients stay long bedridden.
supply side, it will not drink the product recycling sweat and urine (730 liters total), as was the case in the ISS. Fini also nutrition pockets designed to provide the minimum necessary for the proper functioning of the body. Scott Kelly will even eat hamburgers, but not right away. During the very first medical examination of his landing, Scott Kelly also certainly nibbled “fruit or cucumber” , rather than a big burger, as he explained in a session of questions and answers on the website Reddit (English) , to avoid upsetting his bowel.
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