U.S. astronaut Christina Koch reacts shortly after the landing of the Russian Soyuz MS-13 space capsule about 150 km ( 80 miles) south-east of the Kazakh town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020. | Photo Credit: AP
NASA astronaut Christina Koch created history on Thursday by returning safely to Earth after spending nearly 11 months in space. By spending 328 days aboard the International Space Station, the 41-year-old American undertook the longest continuous spaceflight ever by a female astronaut.
Last week she had said she was looking forward to earthly pleasures such as the the feeling of wind on my face. She took off from Earth on 12 Marcy 2019, and her stint on the space station bettered the previous record set by a female astronaut -- fellow American Peggy Whitson.
Koch, who has specialised in the development of space science instruments, is an electric engineer from North Carolina. She touched down on the Kazakh steppe along with fellow astronauts Luca Parmitano and Alexander Skvortsov.
By pushing themselves physically and mentally, astronauts like Koch provide vital clues to researchers, as space agencies and private companies such as Elon Musk's SpaceX plan more ambitious missions including the big one to Mars.
Space exploration might sound super exciting, but space comes with severe, even life-threatening challenges. For one, you are exposed to high radiation levels that can potentially cause cancer. Your diet is heavy in freeze-dried intake, according to NASA, which is not exactly what the doctor would recommend as being 'healthy' back on Earth.
To keep bones and muscles from wasting away a strict exercise regimen is mandatory. Because of lower gravity, muscles and bones tend to weaken since they are no longer supporting the weight of the body.
Another noticeable symptom is that the eyes of the astronauts suffer from what is known as neuro-ocular syndrome caused by a swollen optic nerve head.
Radiation is a massive problem because there is no atmosphere to filter out the harmful rays. The mission to Mars will have to take this into consideration as radiation on the Red Planet is believed to be eight times than that of the Earth.
Spaceflight also changes an astronauts brain structure and function.
A study by the Medical University of South Carolinashowed significant structural changes in the brain after long-duration missions to space.
Another study, published in JAMA Neurology, has shown that the brain changes in ways similar to ageing -- but faster.
When it comes to mental health issues in space travel, however, these are still poorly understood. NASA has so far not reported behavioural changes after long space missions. But the challenge of remaining cut off from family and friendsand in darkened isolation for years -- and what that does to the mind -- is something NASA is studying as it plans future missions.
In April last year, NASA shared the results of a landmark study on twin astronauts, and the results were sobering to say the least. The study found that the effects of space travel on the human body are profound.
The study involved two real-life twins Scott Kelly and Mark Kelly both astronauts -- who were separated from each other on March 27, 2015. While Scott lived on the International Space Station, his twin brother Mark lived on Earth. Scott returned to Earth a year later on 1 March 2016.
The detailed study showed that long-term space missions such as the one to Mars will cause major changes to an astronauts cognitive performance, metabolism and genetics. Worse, the changes could last long after the astronaut has returned to Earth.
By the end of Scott Kellys mission, there were clear signs of damaged DNA andcognitive decline. Even after returning to Earth, these effects persisted for several months.
Christina Kochs 11 months in space will provide researchers more such clues about what the great leap into the unfathomable unknown that is space does to the human body and mind.
The views expressed by the author are personal and do not in any way represent those of Times Network.
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NASA astronaut Christina Koch returns to Earth after 328 days What space travel does to the body and mind - Times Now
