Skip to main content

NASA astronaut relearns to walk after six months in space

We all know space can have various effects on an astronaut’s body, but to actually witness them is something else altogether. NASA astronaut Andrew Feustel recently posted a video in which he’s seen relearning to walk after his return from a six-month voyage in space. All those months of microgravity have clearly had an effect on his motor skills. In the video he’s seen teetering across the floor with his eyes closed to regain his sense of balance. “On October 5th this is what I looked like walking heel-toe eyes closed after 197 days on @Space_Station during the Field Test experiment...I hope the newly returned crew feels a lot better,” Feustal wrote on Twitter, along with the video taken by his wife, Indira Feustel. Andrew Feustel went aboard the International Space Station as part of Expedition 55/56 on March 21 and returned to Earth on October 4. He performed his duties initially as Flight Engineer and then as Commander of the International Space Station. During his stay in space, he undertook three spacewalks to perform maintenance and upgrades on the space station. With only microgravity available in space, astronauts aboard the rapidly orbiting space station are in a constant state of free fall. As a result, there’s no definite ‘up’ or ‘down’. This means astronauts don’t necessarily lie down on a bed to sleep the way do on Earth. Nor do they use the floor to walk; they simply propel themselves around with the help of surrounding walls and objects. This causes human muscles to ‘forget’ how to work. For this reason, walking has to be relearnt once the astronauts are back on Earth. Though astronauts aboard the International Space Station do their best to keep fit and active by exercising regularly, the constant floating around takes a toll on their muscles. The video shared by Andrew Feustel reminds us that astronauts have to go through a lot in the name of science. Scientists are currently studying the effects of long-term voyages in space so we can soon attempt manned missions to neighbouring planets like Mars. Cover image courtesy: NASA

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2rZBGmn
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Realme 12 Pro vs Poco X6 Pro: Which One to Buy?

Realme 12 Pro 5G was unveiled in India last week with a Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 SoC, a 5,000mAh battery with 67W fast charging, and a triple rear camera setup. The phone has a starting price of Rs. 25,999 and a lot of competition. We put the Realme 12 Pro 5G head-to-head against the Poco X6 Pro 5G, which starts at Rs. 26,999, to find out which one’s more value for money. from Gadgets 360 https://ift.tt/iXNeUtW
14 comments
Read more

Jio effect: Bharti Airtel may soon shut down 2G, 3G and shift on 4G-only network

Taking a cue from Reliance Jio which offers only 4G network, Bharti Airtel is looking to transform it current setup to become the second 4G-only network provider in India. According to the company’s Chief Executive, Gopal Vittal, Airtel is expediting steps to deploy the fourth generation airwaves in the 900 Mhz band, which are currently used only for 2G voice services, to 4G only. The Economic Times said that Airtel has 116 units of airwaves in the 900 MHz band across 16 circles. “We are seeing dramatic growth in 4G demand, and over a period of time, the 900 Mhz band will purely serve our 4G customers, while 2G services will be continue to be available on the 1800 Mhz band,” Vittal said, adding that the company will have “a transition strategy in place” in the run-up to deploying all its 900 MHz band spectrum for 4G services. The executive also signalled that the telecom service provider could shut down 3G networks in the near future, saying “the demise of 3G technology is rapidly dra...
Post a Comment
Read more