Finally, Axiom Space wants to build a private space station. Personally, I would prefer extremely wealthy people to donate all their money to help build better on Earth, but in any case, you can read a little more about the future of private space stations in today’s newsletter, along with stories about cosmonauts and wolves. MacKenzie Scott, if you’re reading, take me! This is a customized version of the Inverse Daily newsletter for Wednesday, April 13, 2022. Sign up for free and learn something new every day. Axiom-1 takes off. Red Huber / Getty Images News / Getty Images “Over the weekend, the Axiom-1 mission transported four rich guys and philanthropists, a celebrity chef menu and biomedical experiments to the International Space Station,” writes Inverse science writer Doris Elín Urrutia. Launched on April 8 in a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, it launched Axiom Space’s game plan for the creation of the first commercial space station. Regardless of your taste for space missions sponsored by famous chefs (flight attendants will serve Iberian ham and chicken paella, among others), the Axiom-1 is primarily the first private mission to the ISS. And already four whole days after the historic event, things seem to be going perfectly. “At 10:13 a.m. Saturday (April 9), the Axiom-1 crew successfully moored at the ISS,” Urrutia wrote. Throughout the week, the crew will assist NASA with experiments on “genetic markers in cellular aging, changes in brain activity in microgravity and a DNA processing system,” writes Urrutia. Continue reading. Look into the eyes of my astronauts. Space Frontiers / Stock Photos / Getty Images If you have to go into space, promise to protect your eyes. New research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that prolonged time in space can swell the brain and, as we have said, cause problems in the body. The study is particularly interested in changes in the brain from spaceflight that cause deterioration of vision, but, strangely enough, suggests that “Russian cosmonauts suffered less than NASA astronauts” due to certain microgravity countermeasures they use, says Charles Q. Choi. “For example, Russian cosmonauts undergo negative lower body pressure sessions starting two weeks before landing, which NASA and ESA do not do – they carry blood from the upper body to the lower body by placing a person in a cylindrical airtight metal tank that is sealed around the pelvis and a vacuum pump then reduces the air pressure around the feet ». NASA and ESA also use free weights to exercise during long missions, which may trap more fluid in the brain. This new research could be crucial in protecting astronauts from a space flight-related neurophthalmic syndrome or SANS, which can include flattening of the back of the eye, blurred vision and other unpleasant symptoms. Continue reading. Ah-woo! Duncan1890 / DigitalVision Vectors / Getty Images In this card story, Inverse Card story writer Jennifer Walter leads readers to a place they undoubtedly have never been before: in the eyes of a wolf. “What do wolves do all day in the summer?” Walter asks about seasonal solitary creatures. “To find out, researchers in Minnesota began watching a day in the life of a lone wolf living in the northern part of the state for the Voyageurs Wolf Project.” One of the most recent installments of the project is a 25-minute video taken by a camera hanging from the neck of a wild wolf. The video spans 14 hours for a true day in the life of a wolf. “In many ways, Wolf Day was quite predictable,” writes Walter. “He walked a lot, spent hours in the shade and even killed a fawn.” But the video is the first of its kind, the first opportunity that people had to see Wolf Day on its own terms and from their own point of view. Click on the entire Walter card story to learn more about the quest and see the highlights from the drowsy, scratchy, bloody day of the wolf. Continue reading. A scene from a comic book. SOPA Images / LightRocket / Getty Images Wolves can spend the summer alone, but people do not mind letting things warm up in pairs. In this long reading of Inverse, author Vivian Lam argues that the longing for homosexuals is a major motivator for fans and artists. “The longing for homosexuals is both the longing for something that is often decisively gay in taste and the display of that longing for how different characters feel about each other,” writes Lam. “For fans who can turn horror thrillers into romcoms and comedy series into Greek tragedies, it is the longing of homosexuals that draws many of them into creative communities – often referred to collectively as fandoms.” Fandoms, like any group whose members promise immortal devotion to a potentially defective thing, can help as much as they can. But it is undeniable that ardent faith is what helps turn a secular Netflix show into something important. “In a world where queer people are alienated, chased and intimidated, shows that allow protagonists to survive give queer fans the opportunity to overcome even the most hostile conditions they face in their lives,” Lam writes. . Translating longing into fantasy, fanart or other fan works, queer fans can “redefine what deserves attention and care”. Continue reading. An astronaut enters Apollo 13.Bettmann / Bettmann / Getty Images About this newsletter: Do you think it can be improved? Do you have an idea for a story? Want to share a story about the time you met an astronaut? Send these thoughts and more to [email protected]
This day in history: Today in 1970, an oxygen tank exploded on Apollo 13 while the ship was more than halfway to the Moon. Although stuck in a dangerous and unprecedented situation, the astronauts on board managed to find their way back to Earth. flew safely into the Pacific Ocean a few restless days later, on April 17th. Song of the day: “Pacific Theme”, by Broken Social Scene.
