Crew-13 Launches 4 Astronauts to ISS for Moon and Mars Research
Updated
Updated · WESH 2 Orlando · Sep 29
Crew-13 Launches 4 Astronauts to ISS for Moon and Mars Research
3 articles · Updated · WESH 2 Orlando · Sep 29
Summary
Four Crew-13 astronauts are set to launch from Kennedy Space Center on Thursday for an International Space Station mission focused on research for future Moon and Mars flights.
NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney will fly with Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, then join Expedition 75 after docking.
Much of the mission will track how months in microgravity affect the human body, including circulation, clotting, vision and physical performance, using blood samples, ultrasounds and other measurements.
Other studies will test lunar-landing piloting after long spaceflight, assess exercise needs in tight spacecraft and measure return-landing forces to improve hardware and reduce injury risk.
The broader station science program also includes in-space manufacturing, bioprinting, augmented reality and AI health monitoring, extending the ISS role as a testbed for deeper-space exploration.
Will the record-breaking seven-hour transit of the Dragon spacecraft Grace fundamentally change how human bodies initially react to sudden microgravity?
If critical piloting skills degrade after just four months in space, how will astronauts safely manually land on distant planets?
Could a simple daily vitamin be the secret to saving astronauts from permanent vision loss during future missions to Mars?