Clayton C Anderson One of the hard parts of spaceflight is the potential difficulty getting home in the case of a family emergency. This will become an even more serious issue as we venture out to Mars and beyond. Over history, there have been many cases of family emergencies occurring on the ground while astronauts are in space. Yet, there isn't really an option for the astronauts to come home. Spaceflight missions require several astronauts sharing the same ride, so you can't just send one person home, everyone has to go. If there was a severe medical emergency on the Space Station, sending the whole crew home early might be an option, but it would have to be life-threatening. While our medical response training is pretty extensive --I was the medical officer of my crew—it is not very detailed. For example, if necessary, I could administer IVs, extract teeth, perform ultrasounds, and even treat trauma wounds. But surgery would be essentially out of the question. Unless there was an incredibly extreme situation, coming home early would not really be an option.
In Album: Roger's Timeline Photos
Dimension:
1024 x 680
File Size:
34.2 Kb
Be the first person to like this.