For the longest single space flight by an astronaut from NASA, Mark Vande Hei is coming back to Earth. Mark spent 355 days in orbit, which is the longest time an astronaut has spent in space in one go. Thus, Vande Hei broke Scott Kelly’s record of 340 days on March 15, 2022.

Mission Objective!

This long mission on the International Space Station gives researchers a chance to see how long-term spaceflight affects the human body. NASA plans to return to the Moon and prepare for human exploration of Mars. Many hours of Vande Hei’s mission were spent doing scientific research on the space station. Mark did everything from plant research to other scientific studies.

Here are the few key areas of Mark Vande Hei’s research on the ISS.

Muscle loss in space!

Study muscle loss in space and test possible treatments. As the length of a mission increases, crew members lose muscle mass, which makes it more important for them to find ways to treat it. 

Celestial Immunity study

Here researchers use blood cells from both older and younger adults to look at how weightlessness affects overall human immune function. The study could lead to the development of new vaccines and drugs that could help prevent and treat existing and new human diseases. 

Human Research Program

Studying and protecting the health of people who have lived and worked on the space station. NASA’s Human Research Program (HRP) is focused on finding the best ways and technologies to keep people safe and productive in space.

Fire Safety and plant growth!

• In fire safety experiments Mark Vande Hei and researchers look into how burning works in microgravity. Thus, the results could help decide which methods are best for putting out fires in space. In addition, assist the researchers in which materials should be used for future space facilities.
• On future long-term missions, crews will be able to grow their own food to add to the food they bring from Earth. Researchers have used the space station to look at how plants grow in microgravity.

What do our readers think about Mark’s areas of research on the space station? Isn’t it exciting? Do you aspire to be an astronaut one day? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Do check out this short Youtube video on Mark Vande Hei’s thoughts on this historic milestone. The video is shared by “NASA Johnson”.

 

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