THEastronaut Italian company Samantha Cristoforetti, returns to Earth with the astronauts of the NASA Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines and Jessica Watkins. This concludes Minerva, her second mission on the International Space Station of which she is commander. The mission began on April 27, 2022, when it departed from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, aboard the shuttle Crew Dragon Freedom.
Commander Cristoforetti
Samantha embarked on her role as an astronaut aboard the Space Station working on a science that is one of a kind and literally outside the borders of the world. In fact, under the Minerva mission, Samantha has performed numerous international experiments in microgravity that spanned a wide range of disciplines.
Many experiments will provide new health information, such asacoustic diagnostics, investigating the effects of noise exposure on human hearing. Similarly, the European Myotones experiment will provide information on maintaining non-muscle maintenance. This could be very useful for those who could design physiotherapy approaches for the benefit of all the people of the world.
The experiments carried out in space
However, Samantha's weightless investigation didn't just offer biological information. Much of her research has focused on materials of the future. For example, the experiment PASTE (Particle Stabilized Emulsions and Foams) focused on the physics of emulsions, which will continue to improve the way food is produced. The properties of alloyed metals and antimicrobial surfaces were also examined; both will provide new and improved building materials.
From her home on the Station, Samantha reached out to a large online audience, becoming the first astronaut to bring science communication from space to TikTok His account has become a concentrate of fragments of life aboard the Space Station, arousing the curiosity of his followers about his daily work and the progress of the mission. Throughout the mission, she recorded personal responses to curious followers, reaching millions of TikTok users around the world.
On the side of women also in space
Strong advocate of women's health, the ESA astronaut (European space agency) participated in the osteoporosis awareness campaign. In this regard, she informed women about the importance of lifting weights and proper nutrition, to ensure strong bones in old age. It should also be noted that Commander Cristoforetti has virtually entered the Gamescom 2022 in Germany, an annual video conference streamed live to hundreds of thousands of online users to inspire technology-minded viewers to invest their skills in science.
(Source texts and images Esa)
