What if you stayed lying down for 60 days to better prepare for human spaceflight… While being paid

Should astronauts ride a bit more bikes when in space to better cushion the consequences of weightlessness? During each of his stays on the International Space Station, Thomas Pesquet forced himself to run or even pedal, more than two hours a day, just to keep in shape. But above all in order to limit bone and muscle loss due to weightlessness.

Is this rhythm the best for the body of the astronauts? Should other measures be put in place to prevent any risk to their health? To prepare for future space flights, the Toulouse space clinic (MEDES) regularly carries out studies by subjecting volunteers to the simulation of microgravity, while of course they are on the ground.

Test the effects of cycling

A little over five years ago, ten men spent two months lying down, their bodies tilted at 6 degrees, to see if a mixture of antioxidants and anti-inflammatories could have any benefit. In the spring, a new operation of the same kind, baptized BRACE, to Bed rest with artificial gravity in cycling exercisewill take place.

The twelve men who will be selected will not have to send themselves a cocktail of pills for breakfast before settling comfortably on their tilted bed to watch the latest TV series. For this new study, part of the 12 reckless will have to ride a bicycle, sometimes even when they find themselves in a centrifuge that rotates at full speed.

“We want to test the effectiveness of physical exercise coupled with artificial gravity, ie centrifugation. By drawing lots, one third of the volunteers will ride a bicycle coupled to the centrifuge six days out of seven, one third only on the bicycle and one third will not have any exercise and will serve as a control”, indicates Arnaud Beck, one of the coordinating doctors of the ‘study.

Fourteen scientific teams will take advantage of this experience to look closely at the impact of micro-gravity, simulated by reclined bed rest, on metabolism, from the eyes to the myocardium, via the brain. The twelve volunteers will be examined from every angle and will benefit from a more than complete check-up.

Compensation of 18,000 euros

An extraordinary study financed by the European Space Agency and the CNES which has just launched the recruitment of its first recruits, since a second campaign will also take place next year. To apply, you don’t have to have a CV as long as your arm. But some criteria are still required.

Here, in the Medes centrifuge.
Here, in the Medes centrifuge. – Prodigima

You must be between 20 and 45 years old, be in perfect health, exercise regularly, have a body mass index between 20 and 27, not smoke, not have any allergies or dietary restrictions. Those who failed at the gates of Koh Lanta, free for 88 days next spring, can already line up. Just like those who have an interest in science or the conquest of space.

During their stay at the space clinic, on the site of the Rangueil hospital, these twelve men will spend 60 days lying down, their heads slightly lower than their feet. But they will also follow a battery of exams two weeks before, as well as a recovery during the fortnight following sunrise. Those who join do not do so solely for the glory and love of space: compensation of 18,000 euros is provided by Medes.


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