The impact of microgravity won't affect AlMansoori's body as much because he's been there for just eight days.- Picture retrieved from MBR Space Centre/Twitter
Dubai - Hazzaa engaged with social media users by tweeting a photo of UAE's Liwa desert from space.
Published: Wed 2 Oct 2019, 8:15 PM
Updated: Wed 2 Oct 2019, 10:42 PM
- By
- Angel Tesorero and Sarwat Nasir
The UAE's first astronaut Hazzaa AlMansoori is all set to land back on earth at 2.59pm (UAE time) today. Here's a round-up of his eight-day mission.
Day 1: Launch to history
>Hazzaa launched into space at 5.57pm UAE time from Baikonur in Kazakhstan onboard the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft along with Nasa flight engineer Jessica Meir and Russian commander Oleg Skripochka.
Day 2: First words from outer space
>"We have reached safely, thanks to Allah. Sending my hello to all my people in the UAE," he had said
>He did his first video call with mission control and then his family. "I am so happy to hear your voices. I wish I could have shared what I was seeing with you - it's a beautiful scenery of sunsets and sunrises of the earth."
>He prayed, recorded a 15-minute film about his activities on the ISS and began his experiments.
Day 3: A royal call
>Hazzaa received a video call from His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai
>He conducted two live sessions with school students and the public. He answered questions about how the launch to space felt, and about his thoughts when he saw earth from space
>He recorded a one-hour film documenting life aboard the ISS
>He conducted an experiment on fluidics to observe how liquids move in weightlessness.
Day 4: How's life (in space)?
>Another live session via HAM radio was organised between him, school students and public, where they asked them questions about life in space, including whether there was enough food at the ISS, how the station was built, how he spent his free time, how he slept, and what astronauts do in case they fall sick
>He carried on with his fluidics experiments
Day 5: First spatial tweet
>He shared a series of photos, where he was seen conducting an experiment on osteology, which measures bone status indexes, body composition, and endocrine regulation in astronauts
>He also calculated his own body mass index to study the impact of microgravity on bone density
>He also tweeted for the first time from space - a photo of the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft docked at the ISS, with a stunning view of earth underneath.
Day 6: To UAE with love from ISS
>Hazzaa engaged with social media users once again by tweeting a photo of UAE's Liwa desert from space
>MBRSC organised two video calls between him and school students
>He conducted studies on autonomic regulation of cardiovascular system, central hemodynamic, and the influence of space flight factors on the spatial distribution of the energy of heart contraction.
Day 7: Dressed for the occasion
>Hazzaa took social media by storm after posting photos of himself wearing the Kandura onboard the station
>He also uploaded a photo of the UAE as seen from space on his social media
>He studied the mechanisms of action and efficiency of different countermeasures against disturbances in the astronaut's motor activity under space flight conditions.
Day 8: Holy sight
>He shared a photo of Makkah from space
>He did a radio call with selected journalists in the UAE
>He and his return journey crewmates on the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft did undocking preparations
Have you noticed Hazzaa's space face?
UAE astronaut Hazzaa AlMansoori's face puffiness is nothing to be alarmed out. It is not unusual for an astronaut's face to appear swelled up upon arrival to the International Space Station (ISS) as microgravity causes fluids in the body to be redistributed to extremities.
The head of the UAE Astronaut Programme, Salem Al Marri, told Khaleej Times that experts often call this condition 'space face' and is a common occurrence in most space travellers.
AlMansoori's chubbier cheeks and swelled up nose were noticeable since he entered through the hatch and into the ISS on September 26. He seemed even puffier in the photos he shared on October 1, in which he wore the traditional Emirati attire. It's been a week since he's been living on the ISS and he will be returning on October 3 at 2.59pm, UAE time.
"We call it space face. It is a normal condition for astronauts who travel to space. The fluids in their bodies, water and blood, are being redistributed. If you see photos of other astronauts who have been to space for the first time, or even more than once, you can see something similar," Al Marri told KT from Karaganda. "He is healthy, though. We have been monitoring his health and we've been having communication with him every day, several times a day."
The impact of microgravity won't affect AlMansoori's body as much because he's been there for just eight days. Long-term stays can cause several changes to a human body, such as loss of muscle mass and bone density. Astronauts and cosmonauts onboard are required to exercise for two hours daily using cycle ergometer and treadmills to minimise large muscle atrophies.
The bodily fluid redistribution stabilises once the astronauts re-enter gravity, meaning AlMansoori's face and body will return to normal.
sarwat@khaleejtimes.com
angel@khaleejtimes.com
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