Tag Archives: experimenten

I am back on Earth but the mission continues

Terug op aarde My return to Earth with the Soyuz was an intense experience. After undocking we conducted some tests and orbited Earth one more time. Above the South-Atlantic Ocean the braking motor fired for four minutes. 140 kms above Egypt the spacecraft separated into three parts. Above Iraq we entered the atmosphere and the air started to glow. The first part was beautiful, we were surrounded by an orange cocoon. After that the ride was simply unpleasant. We were pushed deeper into our chairs and suffered 4,7 times normal gravity. The parachutes opened 10 kms above the ground and our capsule shook violently. 15 minutes later we landed with a jolt. It felt like a serious car crash. Luckily, search and rescue arrived quickly to pull us out of the cramped capsule. I could not wait to get out as my leg was stuck and I could not feel my foot anymore. Once I was sitting in the chair in front of the television camera I was laughing again. That was the moment I thought: yes, it is all over, everything will be fine. (more...)

Sport, experiments and somersaults for TV

Neurospat Every day on board the ISS I change into several different clothes. Back home on Earth most people have a logical schedule. You go to work, go shopping in the weekend, visit friends or go to a sport club. In space things happen differently. Our schedule tells us what to do down to the last minute. Thankfully there is some breathing space, but some events need to be done on time due to the satellite connections with ground control. The activities we do can be quite varied. One moment I am on the exercise bike, half an hour later I could be doing a live event with the American media. In between I might grab a quick lunch, after the live event, another hour of exercise, and then back to the experiments. Sometimes it is not worth changing clothes in between our different activities, so we end up floating around on television in our exercise clothes. Read on...

The ISS: a bigger home with a lovely window

Zonsopkomst My first week on the space station is already over. Our launch was great. It might have been even better for the spectators than it was for us, as we did not see anything until we were about eighty kilometres above the Earth. When the protective cover finally did lift from the spaceship... what a magnificent view! I realised then that I had been training for over four years for this moment. I am back in space, and this time I do not have to return to Earth after just a week. The first week does take getting used to. First in the Sojuz, a small spaceship where the three of us had to stay for two days and then the International Space Station which has doubled in size since my last flight. I recognised the Russian part of course, the dining tables and packed modules and also the American laboratory Destiny. But many complete modules I had seen only as mock-ups, such as the European laboratory Columbus and the Japanese Kibo. Our 'house' has grown and I am looking forward to living here for a longer period than last time I was here. Read on...