Watch the video: “Why shouldn’t people with disabilities be included?” – Michi Benthaus wants to go into space in a wheelchair.
As the only German participant, Michi Benthaus took part in the AstroAccess mission in December 2022. A project that aims to promote inclusion in space as well. Because the student from Munich never gave up her dream of a career in space travel, despite suffering from paraplegia.
Michi Benthaus: I’ve always been fascinated by space and when I was a little kid I saw something like that and was pretty impressed by all the spaceships that flew there. And yes, of course I know that’s not the reality. But somehow that caught me.
So much so that even a mountain bike accident a few years ago didn’t set her back. The aerospace engineering student tells the about this star in the video interview.
Benthaus: At the end of September 2018 I had an accident while driving, unfortunately I jumped too far and broke a vertebra and since then I have had complete paraplegia. I’m fine with it today. Well I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t like to be able to walk again, but yeah I’ve come to terms with it very well. I totally accepted that for myself and have definitely found a very good way for, I would say, my new life, with which I am fortunately very, very happy.
Sure, in terms of becoming an astronaut, being paraplegic is bad. I think everyone knows that astronauts are physically very demanding. I really wanted to, but I also realize that even as a healthy person it’s just not easy to get the opportunity to be selected. That’s exactly why it was never the case that I saw myself there and said: Yes, I’ll definitely make it. Or I’m definitely the one to be chosen. It was always clear to me that I would like to work in aerospace. And yes, with this accident my dream of ever flying into space died, of course. And now I’m glad I found the Astro Access mission.
For the AstroAccess mission, Michi took part in a parabolic flight in Houston, USA, in December. Here, an aircraft flies maneuvers that allow weightlessness on board for a short time. During these maneuvers, the physically challenged part of the crew tested possible solutions for barriers in space. For Michi it is inconceivable to categorically exclude people with disabilities from space.
Benthaus: I don’t think any of us are asking the ESA to say the day after tomorrow: Hey, we’re taking you with us to the ISS for six months. Just like that, without preparing anything or giving it enough thought. But I still find that technical possibilities and also the mindset of people and society are changing. And I think that we are definitely in a time when you don’t have to completely exclude disabled people from space travel.
Especially with regard to all the commercial space companies and space programs and also the space tourism that will probably arise in the next few years. Luckily we live in a society where inclusion is becoming more and more of an issue and people try to include disabled people in every respect. And why shouldn’t you in space travel?
Your participation in the project also has a symbolic effect for Michi.
Benthaus: If someone with a disability were to fly into space now, that would of course be something that was unthinkable for many until a few years ago or maybe even now. And then you should, so to speak, overcome this limit, I would say, then that makes a good statement for inclusion. And I personally think that’s pretty good. That’s why on the one hand you say, okay, you’re really researching to include people in space travel and on the other hand you also push inclusion and pay attention to people with disabilities.
With the British former Paralympic athlete John McFall, a physically disabled person could become an astronaut for the first time as part of a feasibility study by the European Space Agency ESA. AstroAcsess is privately financed by donations and should also contribute important insights. In addition to Michi, people from Australia, Brazil, Spain and the USA took part in the parabolic flights.
The deaf crew tested the use of sign language in weightlessness. Blind crew members tested, among other things, graphics on the cabin walls, which are intended to enable both blind and sighted crew members to find their way around in emergencies and darkness. Together with the mobility crew, they also demonstrated that people with disabilities can climb into a starting seat independently and put on a five-point belt.
Benthaus: I was part of an experiment about how to stabilize someone with paraplegia. Astronauts mainly do experiments or repair something in zero gravity. And if you work and then push yourself off a bit or give yourself an impulse, then you float away. That’s why you have to stabilize yourself somehow. And on the ISS, that is, on the International Space Station, there are some kind of brackets or poles in the floor where you can hook your feet. Of course I can’t do that because I can’t move my feet. And yes, that’s why I was part of an experiment where we looked at whether bars on the hips were practically sufficient to be able to stabilize me. That actually worked extremely well. In my case, I mean, we tested it on the ground, which doesn’t matter where you actually test it, because that’s the exciting thing about weightlessness. There is no up and down.
In general, we definitely found that it doesn’t take that much to stabilize someone in weightlessness like that. I just felt completely free, because it was super nice for me to be able to move around again without the wheelchair. Yes, it’s been a while for me too. Otherwise, I like to compare it with the feeling of jumping on a trampoline, everyone or almost everyone knows that. And the principle is the same.
During parallel flight you are weightless due to the free fall. And yes, with the trampoline that’s up and down accordingly and at that moment you’re practically weightless. And if you now imagine the feeling practically for 20 seconds, then you get the impression of the 20 seconds of weightlessness that you have. But they’re over really super fast, even faster than 20 seconds when you’re sitting here, because yes, there’s just so much happening, you have to get your bearings first and then you have the feeling, okay, it’s actually over now . And also the 18 parabolas, they came up so quickly and I had so much fun that I would like to fly again right away.
Michi has been back in Germany since Christmas and would like to continue working on the project. She also works as a working student at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics. If there is still time left between work and university, Michi likes to play wheelchair tennis and go karting. But now there are exams, the next step on her way into space travel.