Missions to the International Space Station focus on conducting science at Earth’s orbiting...
Missions to the International Space Station focus on conducting science at Earth's orbiting laboratory.
One of the science pillars for Andreas Mogensen's Huginn mission was health where researchers study the effects of microgravity on the human body in space.
"We received seven to eight hours of data for each day Andreas wore it and we hope to have the hardware returned to Earth soon," says Thomas E. Andersen, CEO of DAC. While SpaceWear was tested by Andreas during his Huginn mission, the small health monitor also has applications in extreme environments on Earth.
"Understanding how the immune system reacts to prolonged stays in space is the focus of Immunity Assay, led by Alexander Choukér and Judith-Irina Buchheim with their team at Ludwig-Maximilians University Hospital in Munich, Germany.  As the first ESA astronaut to participate, Andreas engaged in the preparation and incubation of 48 blood samples over three sessions."This project has been challenging in the best way as we are building a basis for future monitoring of astronaut's immune system as they go to the Moon and Mars, says Alexander Choukér, professor and Head of Research Laboratory I - 'Stress and Immunity' at LMU´s Department of Anesthesiology.
Many astronauts sleep worse in space compared to Earth.
Reas wore measurement devices in his ears for several nights during his mission for the Sleep in Orbit experiment.
"The quality of the measurements we received from Andreas was great, with a total of 20 recorded nights on the Space Station. We look forward to more astronauts on current and future missions using our hardware to better understand how they sleep," says Simon Kappel, assistant professor at Aarhus University, Denmark.
More astronauts from Crew 8 and Crew 9 will perform the Sleep in Orbit experiment.
Another experiment about sleep was the Circadian light, designed by SAGA Space Architects to support the astronauts' day and night cycles, also called circadian rhythm.
"The lamp stayed in his sleeping quarters for most of the mission and we have gathered quite some data on his experience with the lamp, which we look forward to analysing. The lamp is designed to make living in extreme environments more enjoyable and support the circadian rhythm to ensure a good night's sleep," adds Simon.