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First Post
16 hours ago
- Science
- First Post
Shubhanshu Shukla is learning to walk again after space travel. Here's why
After spending nearly 20 days in microgravity aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is now going through recovery and adjusting to life on Earth again. A video shared by Shukla on Instagram shows him relearning how to walk, with two people supporting him as he takes slow, steady steps. Notably, astronauts are unable to walk immediately after returning from space read more In a video posted by Shukla, he could be seen learning to walk again. Image: Instagram/ Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who came back from space on July 15 after spending almost three weeks aboard the International Space Station (ISS), is now going through recovery and getting used to life on Earth again. Notably, he was one of four astronauts who flew to the ISS on June 25 aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft as part of the Axiom-4 mission. ALSO READ | Who is astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla's wife, Kamna Shukla? STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In a video posted by Shukla on Instagram, he could be seen learning to walk again, with two people helping him take slow and steady steps. Earlier this year, Nasa astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were taken out of their SpaceX crew capsule on stretchers after returning from over nine months in space. When astronauts return to Earth from space, they are unable to walk immediately after landing. So, why does this happen? Let's find out: Why Shubhanshu Shukla is learning to walk again After spending close to 20 days in microgravity, Shubhanshu Shukla and his team landed safely on July 15. On Tuesday, he posted a video on Instagram showing himself trying to walk again and readjust to gravity. In the clip, he is seen placing one foot in front of the other, with two people supporting him. 'I have received many messages wishing me a speedy recovery. I want to thank everyone and give a quick update,' he wrote. Shukla explained that space travel affects the body in several ways, such as fluid movement, changes in heart rate, and reduced balance and muscle strength. 'These are adaptations to the new environment,' he said, adding, 'Once the body gets used to this and we return to gravity, these adjustments happen once again.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD He mentioned that while the recovery period varies for each astronaut, the body starts adapting soon after landing. 'I was surprised to observe the pace with which our body can adjust to new settings,' he said. During their time on the International Space Station, Shukla and his crewmates carried out more than 60 scientific experiments and outreach activities. Shukla is the second Indian to travel to space, after Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, who made the journey in 1984. Why astronauts have to learn to walk again after space travel When astronauts return from space, they are often unable to walk on their own right away. Many need support to stand or move properly. This happens because of temporary changes that take place in the body during space travel. John DeWitt, director of applied sports science at Rice University in Texas and a former senior scientist at Nasa's Johnson Space Center, told Live Science that just like someone might feel sick on a roller coaster or a rough boat ride, astronauts can feel dizzy and nauseous when they come back to Earth. This is one reason why astronauts are usually moved out of the spacecraft on stretchers after landing, as a safety step. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The sensation occurs because our bodies rely on gravity to function normally. But on the International Space Station, astronauts experience weightlessness as the station constantly falls towards Earth. Their bodies slowly adjust to this changed setting. Recently, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were carried out on stretchers after their return from space. Sunita Williams was taken out of the SpaceX crew capsule on stretchers after returning from space. AP Another reason astronauts find walking hard is due to fluid shifts. In space, fluids move towards the upper body. When astronauts return, they may feel faint or dizzy from a sudden drop in blood pressure while standing, as their body needs time to relearn how to manage blood flow under gravity. Balance is also affected. The part of the inner ear that helps with movement and balance adapts to zero gravity. Once back on Earth, the brain takes time to adjust and process signals correctly. Movements that were easy in space now feel clumsy, as the brain relearns how to move with gravity, The Times of India reported. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD How do the astronauts recover? To recover from the effects of microgravity and adjust to Earth's gravity, astronauts go through careful rehabilitation. They take part in physical therapy sessions designed to rebuild muscle strength and bone density lost during their time in space. Balance training is also provided to help the vestibular system readjust to Earth's environment. As space travel has a major impact on cardiovascular health, astronauts slowly resume physical activity. This helps their heart and circulation return to normal levels.
News18
20 hours ago
- Science
- News18
Shubhanshu Shukla Learns To Walk Again After Spending 18 Days In Space
Last Updated: Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, one of four astronauts on the Axiom-4 mission, launched aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on June 25. Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who returned from space on July 15 after nearly three weeks aboard the International Space Station (ISS), is now undergoing recovery and physical readjustment on Earth. Shukla, one of four astronauts on the Axiom-4 mission, launched aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on June 25. After spending nearly 20 days in microgravity, he and the team splashed down safely off the coast of California. In a video shared on Instagram, Shukla is seen relearning how to walk, supported by two individuals as he takes slow, deliberate steps. 'I have received many messages wishing me a speedy recovery. I want to thank everyone and give a quick update," he wrote in the post. He explained that during space travel, the body undergoes several physiological changes due to the absence of gravity, such as fluid shifts, changes in heart rate and balance, and muscle loss. Now, back on Earth, he said, the body has to adapt again. 'Though the rate of recovery varies for each astronaut, I was amazed at how quickly the human body begins to readjust," he noted. 'In the pursuit of the unknown (space), you get to know more about yourself." According to Union Minister Jitendra Singh, Shukla and the other three astronauts will remain in quarantine until July 23. The period will include medical monitoring and support to aid their re-adaptation. Minister Singh, in an interview with PTI, said Shukla's mission has provided India with valuable practical insights as it prepares for its human spaceflight programme, Gaganyaan. 'It has added to India's capabilities and positioned us more strongly for future international space collaborations," he said. During their stay aboard the ISS, Shukla and his crewmates conducted over 60 scientific experiments and outreach activities. Shukla is only the second Indian to travel to space, after Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, who flew in 1984. view comments First Published: July 23, 2025, 08:46 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
NDTV
21 hours ago
- Science
- NDTV
Watch: Shubhanshu Shukla Learns To Walk Again After Spending 18 Days In Space
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who returned from a successful space mission last week, is relearning to walk on Earth again. Mr Shukla was among the four crew members who flew aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on June 25 as part of the Axiom-4 mission. He returned safely to Earth on July 15 after spending approximately 18 days aboard the ISS. On Tuesday, Mr Shukla shared a video on Instagram of himself trying to walk again and getting used to gravity. In the clip, he is seen being helped by two other people as he puts each step in front of the last one. "I have received a lot of messages regarding my health and wishing me speedy recovery. I want to thank you all and also give an update. Experiencing microgravity, our body goes through several changes like fluid shift, heart rate, balance readjustment, muscle loss. These are adaptations to the new environment. Once the body gets used to this and we return to gravity, these adjustments happen once again. Though it varies for all astronauts, the body soon starts adapting to its new environment. I was surprised to observe the pace with which our body can adjust to new settings," Mr Shukla wrote in the caption of the post. "In the pursuit of the unknown(space), you get to know more about yourself," he added. Take a look at the video below: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Shubhanshu Shukla (@ Mr Shukla and the three other mission astronauts will remain in quarantine until July 23 to complete medical and re-adaptation procedures, according to an official statement quoting Union Minister Jitendra Singh. In an interview with PTI, Mr Singh said Mr Shukla's three-week stay at the International Space Station as part of the Axiom-4 mission has given India valuable insights and experience in handling space missions as it prepares for its own Gaganyaan project. It gave a tremendous amount of experience, expertise for India's future voyages and also put the country in a better position for large international collaborations, the Union Minister continued. "But most of all, it also sends out a huge, huge message across the globe. Now, India has come of age as far as the space sector is concerned," he said. Shubhanshu Shukla and three other crewmates splashed down off the coast of California on July 15. During their time aboard the ISS, Mr Shukla and the Ax-4 crew were involved in over 60 scientific experiments and outreach initiatives. Mr Shukla is only the second Indian to visit space. Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma was the first to do so in 1984.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Is there a rocket launch today? SpaceX Falcon 9 to carry NASA twin satellites to orbit
The next spacecraft scheduled to launch in Southern California is, once again, a Falcon 9 rocket. But this time, the SpaceX vehicle won't be carrying a batch of Starlink satellites. Instead, aboard the spacecraft will be twin NASA satellites that will orbit Earth in tandem while studying how the sun's powerful activity can disrupt our planet's magnetosphere. But that information may not matter much to those on the ground who just want to see a rocket thundering high overhead after getting off the ground. If you're looking for a spot to catch the liftoff from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, we got you covered. Rocket launches can be – and often are – scrubbed or delayed due to any number of factors, including poor weather conditions or unexpected issues with spacecraft. Check back with the VC Star for any updates on the impending rocket launch. In the meantime, here's what to know about the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base, as well as when and where to watch it: California rocket launches: Here's what's due to launch in July from Vandenberg What time is the SpaceX rocket launch from California? A Federal Aviation Administration operations plan advisory indicates the launch is being targeted for Tuesday, July 22, with backup opportunities available the following day, if needed. The launch window opens at 11:13 a.m. PT, according to NASA. The Vandenberg Space Force Base has not yet provided an official launch alert. SpaceX Dragon landing: Axiom 4 mission becomes latest spaceflight to make splashdown off California coast Where is the next launch from California? The launch will take place from Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Most launches from Vandenberg fly at a south or southeast trajectory. What is the next mission launching from Vandenberg? SpaceX will serve as the launch service provider for a NASA mission to launch twin satellites to study solar activity's effects on Earth. The TRACERS mission (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites) will make use of the company's famous two-stage 230-foot Falcon 9 rocket, one of the world's most active, to get the satellites into orbit, where they will observe observe how solar wind interact with Earth's magnetosphere. How to watch SpaceX Starlink launch livestream SpaceX may provide a webcast of the Starlink launch close to liftoff time on its website, along with updates on social media site X. The company often retweets posts by its founder, Elon Musk. Where to watch the Starlink launch in California Because Vandenberg is an active military base, the launch complex does not host public viewings of launches. But if conditions are clear, rocket launches from the Vandenberg Space Force Base can be viewed from several locations as far as Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. Space Launch Schedule, a website dedicated to tracking upcoming rocket launches, provided a list of places in California to catch the launch in person: 13th Street and Arguello Boulevard, the public site with the closest views of SpaceX launches Floradale Avenue and West Ocean Avenue, officially designated as the 'viewing site for SLC-6' (space launch complex-6) Renwick Avenue and West Ocean Avenue, another intersection close to the base where spectators can park Santa Lucia Canyon Road and Victory Road, provides a partial view of Complex 4 The city of Lompoc in Santa Barbara County is filled with places to catch a rocket launch. The city's tourism bureau, Explore Lompoc, even maintains this list with additional viewing locations: , 6851 Ocean Park Road, which, while it doesn't have a view of the launch pad itself, is located only four miles from the launch site and provides a good vantage to see rockets get off the ground. Parking is limited, and law enforcement will close the road to the beach once parking is full. , 1 Hancock Drive, a community college located nine miles from the launch site where both the launch pad and rocket's tip can be seen before liftoff. , N A Street and McLaughlin Road, located within 10 miles of the launch site, is filled with large fields for activities or for spectators to set up chairs. Surf Beach on Ocean Avenue, one of the closest and most popular places to watch rocket launches near Lompoc, as long as it's open and accessible. However, there is an active train track, the Amtrak Surf Station, that visitors must cross. While trains don't run during launch windows, the vehicles could start up again with little warning if a liftoff is scrubbed. Will there be sonic booms? Residents of Santa Barbara County, San Luis Obispo County and Ventura County, California, could hear sonic booms, according to Vandenberg Space Force Base. Sonic booms are brief, thunder-like noises that are often heard from the ground when a spacecraft or aircraft travels faster than the speed of sound. What to know about reentry Following the launch, the Falcon 9 rocket's booster will aim to to return to the launch site for a landing at LZ-4. This allows for SpaceX personnel to recover the booster so it can be reused in future spaceflights. What is SpaceX? Elon Musk, the world's richest man, founded SpaceX in 2002. The commercial spaceflight company is headquartered at Starbase in South Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border. The site, which is where SpaceX has been conducting routine flight tests of its 400-foot megarocket known as Starship, was recently voted by residents to become its own city. SpaceX conducts many of its own rocket launches, most using the Falcon 9 rocket, from both California and Florida. That includes a regular cadence of deliveries of Starlink internet satellites into orbit, and occasional privately-funded commercial crewed missions on the Dragon. The most recent of SpaceX's private human spaceflights, a mission known as Fram2, took place in April. SpaceX was also famously involved in funding and operating the headline-grabbing Polaris Dawn crewed commercial mission in September 2024. SpaceX additionally benefits from billions of dollars in contracts from NASA and the Department of Defense by providing launch services for classified satellites and other payloads. What is the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California? The Vandenberg Space Force Base is a rocket launch site in Santa Barbara County in Southern California. Established in 1941, the site was previously known as the Vandenberg Air Force Base. Though it's a military base, the site also hosts both civil and commercial space launches for entities like NASA and SpaceX. Space Launch Delta 30, a unit of Space Force, is responsible for managing the launch operations at Vandenberg, as well as the missile tests that take place at the base. Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@ This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: California rocket launch today: What time to see NASA TRACERS mission Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
321 Launch: Space news you may have missed over the past week (July 21)
SpaceX rocket to launch Amazon broadband satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station In a partnership between rivals, Elon Musk's SpaceX is slated to launch a payload of Jeff Bezos' Amazon broadband satellites into low-Earth orbit during a late-night liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will take flight during a 27-minute launch window that opens at 2:18 a.m. Wednesday, July 16 at Launch Complex 40. Read the full story here. Axiom 4 astronauts depart space station on SpaceX Dragon, prepare for California splashdown A group of private astronauts are journeying home through outer space after spending a little more than two weeks at the International Space Station. The four-person crew of a venture known as Axiom Mission 4 reached the orbital laboratory June 26 after launching on a SpaceX vehicle from Florida. Ahead of the spacefarers, under the command of retired NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, is a daylong cosmic trip ending with a water landing off the coast of California. Read the full story here. How NASA's upcoming Crew-11 astronauts were impacted by Boeing Starliner incident NASA's next crew heading to the International Space Station is set to arrive in Florida in the coming weeks — and this Crew-11 mission is in more ways than one the follow-up mission to last year's ill-fated Starliner flight test. NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov are set to embark on an eight-month mission to the ISS as part of NASA's crew rotation on the orbiting outpost. Read the full story here. SpaceX KF-01 launch recap: Live updates from Amazon mission from Cape Canaveral, Florida Launch recap: Scroll down to review live updates from the Wednesday, July 16, liftoff of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral on the Amazon Project Kuiper KF-01 mission. Read the full story here. Elon Musk's SpaceX will help Amazon launch competitor Kuiper satellites: Here's why Amazon's internet-beaming Kuiper satellites could one day be a formative challenge to the Starlink constellation SpaceX has spent years amassing. So, why is SpaceX, the commercial spaceflight company tech mogul Elon Musk founded in 2002, helping Amazon get the satellites into orbit? Read the full story here. SpaceX launch photos: Falcon 9 deploys Amazon satellites on KF-01 mission from Cape Canaveral Read the full story here. Will Florida's Space Coast surpass 100 annual rocket launches for 1st time this year? Will the annual number of orbital rockets launched from Florida's Space Coast reach triple digits for the first time by year's end? Stay tuned. During 2024, a record-shattering 93 launches took flight from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and NASA's neighboring Kennedy Space Center, easily zooming past the previous record of 72 launches in 2023. Read the full story here. What to know: ULA Vulcan rocket to launch national security mission from Cape Canaveral It's been awhile since Florida has seen a Vulcan rocket launch, but United Launch Alliance is pushing ahead to break that drought. While an official launch date is yet to come, ULA has announced the upcoming USSF-106 mission for the Space Force. The company has also teased photos of the red and white Vulcan rocket in the process of being stacked for launch. Read the full story here. Days after SES, Intelsat merge, SpaceX to launch 2 satellites for company from Cape Canaveral Fresh off completing its $3.1 billion acquisition of competitor Intelsat on Thursday, July 17, European global satellite operator SES is preparing to launch a key pair of satellites atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. SpaceX is targeting Monday, July 21, to deploy SES' ninth and 10th O3B mPOWER satellites from Launch Complex 40. The launch window extends from 5 p.m. to 8:13 p.m., a Federal Aviation Administration operations plan advisory indicates. Read the full story here. New Space Force STARCOM commander returns to Patrick Space Force Base after 11-year absence When U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. James Smith and his family packed into their Honda Odyssey van in 2014 and drove north on Interstate 95 to the Pentagon, he didn't think he'd ever get stationed on Florida's Space Coast again. Fast-forward 11 years. Smith has returned — as a Space Force major general. And he'll lead STARCOM as the high-tech field command continues transitioning from Colorado to Patrick Space Force Base, eventually creating a headquarters boasting more than 450 personnel in the next several years. Read the full story here. Florida Tech withdraws from Cape Canaveral rocket-noise study, citing its narrow scope Citing insufficient pricing and scope of research, the Florida Institute of Technology has withdrawn from a partnership with the city of Cape Canaveral to monitor potential impacts of rocket launches on buildings and infrastructure. This $10,019 study, which the Cape Canaveral City Council approved in April, called for Florida Tech to install sensors — including sound level meters, accelerometers and air quality monitors — at a handful of buildings across Cape Canaveral and collect data before, during and after rocket launches. Read the full story here. For the latest news from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and NASA's Kennedy Space Center, visit Another easy way: Click here to sign up for our weekly Space newsletter. Rick Neale is a Space Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Neale at Rneale@ Twitter/X: @RickNeale1 Space is important to us and that's why we're working to bring you top coverage of the industry and Florida launches. Journalism like this takes time and resources. Please support it with a subscription here. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: 321 Launch: Space news you may have missed over the past week (July 21) Solve the daily Crossword
