Washington: Now back on their home planet after a mission that stretched to 286 days, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have physical and mental adaptations to make. “It’s definitely an adjustment,” said Terry Virts, a former commander of the ISS. “You’ve had that beautiful view for all that time and you’ve been floating around weightless and then here you are, back on planet Earth, trying to look and feel normal again. Your mind and your body have to process a new way of living when you go into space, then do it all again when you come back down.”
Wilmore, 62, and Williams, 59, will have come home a couple of inches taller; without gravity to keep the spinal column compressed, astronauts gain up to 3 per cent in height as the fluidfilled discs between vertebrae relax and expand. On Earth, that process reverses itself swiftly, but acute and chronic pain can result from muscle loss in the lower back and spinal instability.
A study led by researchers in Madrid found a significant occurrence of disc herniations and disc
dehydration in returning astronauts; 77 per cent reported pain during space flight, 47 per cent experienced acute pain after returning to Earth and a third suffer from chronic pain post-mission.
For every month in space, astronauts’ weight-bearing bones can lose around 1 per cent of their density unless they exercise to mitigate it. The ISS has a treadmill, exercise bike and weightlifting equipment specially designed to counter microgravity. Astronauts follow a rigorous daily workout routine.
Virts, who spent 199 days on the ISS in 2014-2015 and 14 days on the STS-130 space shuttle mission in 2010, said: “Exercise is super important - 2.5 hours a day ... and a vitamin D tablet, because you don’t get the sunshine up there. I was religious about it and I lost zero per cent of my bone density.”
Recalibrating the body’s balance system is one of the main challenges on return. In weightlessness, the brain does not need to process movements the same way; back on the ground, the brain needs to be retrained.
There are also sensory adjustments to make. The skin on the soles of the feet after months spent floating is baby soft and sore to walk on, for example, until astronauts have thickened it back up from walking.
President, PM Modi hail Sunita's safe return
President Droupadi Murmu and PM Narendra Modi joined celebrities, politicians, scientists and others to celebrate the return of Sunita to earth after nine months, terming her an inspiration for generations to come and lauding her determination.
“India’s daughter and her fellow astronauts have inspired everyone with their perseverance, dedication and never-say-die spirit,” Murmu said on X. “Congratulations to the entire team behind the safe return of Nasa's Crew 9 mission to earth. Their historic journey is a tale of determination, teamwork and extraordinary courage,” she added.
The PM said it was a test of grit, courage and the boundless human spirit of the astronauts. “Their unwavering determination in the face of the vast unknown will forever inspire millions. Space exploration is about pushing the limits of human potential, daring to dream, and having the courage to turn those dreams into reality,” he said, adding that Williams, a “trailblazer and an icon”, had exemplified this spirit throughout her career.
Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh and Piyush Goyal, as well as Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge were among those who congratulated Williams.
Jhulasan village erupts in joy
Jhulasan in Mehsana district, Sunita Williams's ancestral village, hardly anyone slept. They had all gathered together, in front of one television, watching onauts Sunita, Wilmore and crew mates Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov land back on Earth aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
The second Sunita got out of the space capsule, joy erupted through the village, that has a deep-rooted connection with the astronaut. Firecrackers lit up the sky, drumbeats thundered in celebration and a grand procession wound its way through the streets, to mark the safe return of the village’s most illustrious daughter. “People were dancing and chanting ‘Har Har Mahadev’ everywhere. The villagers had also organised a ‘yagna’ praying for her safe return. It’s incredible to think that the same narrow lanes where her father once played as a child held this celebration for her,” said Kishore Pandya, Sunita’s relative from Jhulasan.
