Tag: long-duration missions
-
What the ISS’s First Medical Evacuation Reveals About Healthcare in Space
Overview: A milestone in space medicine The International Space Station recently faced a turning point in its two-decade-long saga of continuous human presence. For the first time in 25 years, a crew member required medical evacuation from orbit to receive treatment on Earth. This event isn’t just a dramatic headline; it provides a rare, real-world…
-
Periods in Space: Navigating Menstruation on Long-Duration Missions
Introduction: A question that sparked a broader conversation Long before humans aimed for Mars, questions about how spaceflight would affect the female body were already shaping mission planning. One anecdote often cited is about Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. When asked if 100 tampons would be the right number for a week-long…
-
Periods in Space: A Practical Guide to Menstrual Health on Long-Duration Missions
Introduction: The Challenge of Menstruation Beyond Earth Periods in space present a unique challenge for long-duration missions. From Sally Ride’s era-tilting question about the right number of tampons to modern research on menstrual management, space health teams have continually adapted to ensure comfort, safety, and mission success. This article examines how menstruation is managed in…
-
Periods in Space: A Leap for Long-Term Space Missions
Introduction: A Small Step, A Big Challenge From the days of Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, spaceflight has always pushed the boundaries of human physiology and logistical planning. While the science of propulsion and life support often grabs headlines, everyday human needs—like menstruation—pose unique questions for long-duration missions. Periods in space are…
-
ESA Tests Bacterial Powder to Feed Moon and Mars Crews with HOBI-WAN Plan
ESA Trials Bacterial Powder for Deep-Space Nutrition The European Space Agency (ESA) is pushing a bold, science-fiction-inspired route to sustain astronauts on long-duration missions. In a project codenamed HOBI-WAN (Hydrogen Oxidizing Bacteria In Weightlessness As a source of Nutrition), researchers are testing a powdered bacterial product designed to serve as a scalable food source for…
-
ESA Tests Bacterial Powder to Feed Moon and Mars Crews
ESA Aims to Feed Astronauts on the Moon and Mars The European Space Agency (ESA) is advancing a bold approach to space nutrition with a project that has captured attention for its quirky acronym: HOBI-WAN – Hydrogen Oxidizing Bacteria In Weightlessness As a source of Nutrition. The initiative investigates whether a specially prepared bacterial powder…
-
HOBI-WAN: ESA tests bacteria powder for space nutrition
ESA pioneers a new kind of space nutrition The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced a bold step in the quest to sustain astronauts on extended lunar and Martian missions. In a project cheekily dubbed HOBI-WAN (Hydrogen Oxidizing Bacteria In Weightlessness As a source of Nutrition), scientists are testing a powdered form of microscopic life…
-
Microbes Essential for Human Health Survive Spaceflight: A Breakthrough for Astronaut Well-Being
Breakthrough: Beneficial Bacteria Endures the Harsh Ride to Space Microbes that play a crucial role in human health—such as supporting digestion, immunity, and circulation—have demonstrated surprising resilience to the extreme stresses of spaceflight. In a pioneering experiment, researchers from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Australia tested the hardy spores of the bacterium…
-
Mars Crews Need Mixed Personalities for Successful Missions
New research argues for diversity in astronaut personalities on Mars missions A new study from the Stevens Institute of Technology proposes that the most effective crews for long-duration Mars missions may not be those composed of a single dominant personality type, but rather teams that mix a range of traits. Using advanced computer simulations, researchers…
-
Alcohol, danger, and solidarity: How Mir cosmonauts drank after a near-disaster in space
Introduction: a crisis in orbit On June 25, 1997, the Russian space station Mir faced a life-threatening crisis when an uncrewed Progress M-34 cargo vessel collided with the station during a docking attempt. The impact ruptured the Spektr module’s pressure hull, causing a rapid loss of air and forcing the crew to seal off the…