Astronauts say space station’s ultrasound machine was critical during medical crisis
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida — Astronauts evacuated last week from the International Space Station say a portable ultrasound machine came in “very handy” during the medical crisis.
In their first public appearance since returning to Earth, the four astronauts declined Wednesday to say which of them needed medical attention and for what reason. It was NASA’s first medical evacuation in 65 years of human spaceflight.
NASA’s Mike Fincke said the crew used the onboard ultrasound machine once the medical problem emerged on Jan. 7, the day before a planned spacewalk that was abruptly canceled. Astronauts had already used the device extensively to routinely check changes in their bodies while living in zero gravity, “so when we had this emergency, the ultrasound device came in very handy.” »
It was so useful that Fincke said there should be one on all future spaceflights. “It really helped,” he said.
“Of course, we didn’t have any other big machines than the ones we have here on planet Earth,” he added. “We try to make sure that everyone before our flight is really not prone to surprises. But sometimes things happen and surprises happen, and the team was ready…the preparation was super important.”
The space station is best configured to respond to medical emergencies, said NASA’s Zena Cardman, who commanded the crew’s first return flight with SpaceX. She said NASA “made all the right decisions” in canceling the spacewalk, which would have been its first, and prioritizing the well-being of the crew.
Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui said he was surprised how all the pre-flight training paid off in dealing with health problems.
“We can handle any type of difficult situation,” Yui said. “It’s actually a very, very good experiment for the future of human spaceflight.”
Russian Oleg Platonov joined them for what turned out to be a five-and-a-half month mission, more than a month less than planned. They were launched last August from Florida and landed in the Pacific off the coast of San Diego last week.
Their replacements welcomed them to Houston, not expected to launch until mid-February. NASA and SpaceX are working to speed up flight.
“We were hoping to give them hugs in space, but we gave them hugs on Earth,” Fincke said.
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