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Cosmonauts participate in postflight experiments

Post-flight research with the participation of cosmonauts begins at the landing site. After a long stay in orbit, it is difficult for the crewmembers to walk, stand, and orientate themselves. It is at this moment that it is important to carry out the first part of the research, to trace the functional performance recovery, which is extremely important for the preparation of interplanetary flights.

‘The work began almost immediately, as soon as the crew left the descent vehicle,’ said ISS-64 crew commander Sergey Ryzhikov. ‘After passing medical control and moving to the sanitary tent, we became the participants of the ‘Field Test’ experiment, connected with the further exploration of the solar system.’

The experts record the readings of the sensors, while the cosmonauts perform the simplest actions: walk on a flat surface, step over obstacles, get up from a chair. The tests are carried out several times at different times after the crew landing, but, if possible, they are organized directly in the tent, where the cosmonauts are usually carried to in arms. Another experiment, Sozvezdiye-LM (‘constellation’), is also meant to create a scientific and technical groundwork for flights to the Moon, interplanetary flights and the colonization of the planets of the solar system. It is meant to evaluate the operator's activity of cosmonauts after long flights and the ability to perform various tasks.

The first stage of the Sozvezdiye-LM-21/22 experiment with Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov took place on April 18, 2021 – on the next day after the ISS-64 expedition crew returned to Earth. Sergey Kud-Sverchkov joined Ryzhikov later. For him, Sozvezdiye is a new experience, as well as other post-flight research, as he had not been to space previously.

The cosmonauts performed the necessary actions in statics and in dynamics, using the Soyuz MS spacecraft controlled descent simulator based on the TsF-18 centrifuge. The experiment checks and evaluates the possibility of manual mode landing on the planet's surface after a long flight.

‘Upon returning to Star City, we took part in the Sozvezdiye-LM experiment conducted by the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. While practicing the descent in a centrifuge, we experienced the same loads as when returning to Earth,’ said Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov.

On the fifth day after the landing, the experiment continued on the Don-Soyuz simulator. The cosmonauts simulated the spacecraft control process during manual docking. The quality of performance of the assigned tasks and the psychophysical state of the cosmonauts were assessed. This data is also necessary for specialists for further use in predicting the activities of cosmonauts during longer flights.