Pulkit Vasudha

She recounted an incident when she looked at the earth from the window of her space craft and her friend mentioned, “It is hard to imagine two people arguing down there, much less fighting”. “All I could see were the snow caps of the Himalayas, the blue of the icebergs, the continents and surprisingly, the pyramids. The boundaries of the countries that we have created exist only in our minds,” she said.

Williams shared her experiences in space and patiently answered many questions put up by the audience. “I saw a world that was truly incredible. Anyone who has the desire and determination can achieve their dreams just like I did,” she said.

The astronaut who holds the records of the longest stay in space, highest number of space walks and longest time spent in space walks said, “When people tell me I have achieved a lot, I laugh, because I have not really done anything remarkably different. I ventured where people had already been. I really look up to my father who left the country at a young age. He left the world he knew to go somewhere unknown, where he made huge strives to change his life.”

Sunita exhorted the youth to keep their minds open to new ideas and new opportunities. “Sometimes, life throws open doors that you are afraid of or uncomfortable to venture through, but if you keep your mind open to exploring all options, you might find yourself living dreams that you never dreamt of,” she said.

Suni on space

* While in space, the human body undergoes interesting changes. For example, in its weightless state in space, the heart doesn’t need to work as hard as it does while on earth. So it can actually start shrinking. So, Sunita had to do a lot of cardiovascular exercises to keep her heart in its original size.

* Also, she grew two inches taller in the six-and-a-half months she spent there. This is because the spine in the body is like a sponge that expands in the absence of gravitation. When Williams returned to earth, the whole body started settling down and getting used to the gravitation again and she lost the height that she had gained.

* Its not just the body, but the body fluids too, start floating in space. When the fluids in the ears, which maintain the body’s balance start floating, it has a very nauseating effect on the person. But, with time, the body adapts itself to the feeling. If not taken care of, the time spent in space can also irreversibly impair some body functions.

* The bone mass in the legs and the hips can also start degenerating because of lack of exercise. On the earth, gravity acts as a constant force against it and keeps it fit. In space, the floating around can really spoil your legs and they may not feel up to walking well again. So there is a lot of equipments for exercise on the space craft which help astronauts keep fit for their landing too.

* In the absence of an atmosphere, the body is exposed to a lot of radiation which is why astronauts have to limit the number of times they can go to space and the amount of time they can spend there without harming their bodies.

Source: Indian Express