The international experiment on isolation and simulation of spaceflight SIRIUS-23, launched in Moscow, will not only help better prepare for future interplanetary travel, but will also contribute to the development of earth sciences. This was stated by the chairman of the work program committee of the project, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Viktor Baranov, in his speech at the opening ceremony of the scientific mission in Moscow on November 14. The video recording of the event was published on the official VK-.page Institute of Medical and Biological Problems (IMBP) RAS, where the project is implemented.
As part of SIRIUS-23, six people will simulate a spacecraft heading to the Moon for a year at the institute’s installation. Russians Yuri Chebotarev (crew commander), Anzhelika Parfenova (flight engineer), Kseniy Orlova (flight doctor), Ksenia Shishenina and Rustam Zaripov (scientists) and their colleague from the Republic of Belarus, researcher Olga Mastitskaya, participated in the experiment.
Academician Baranov noted that more than 150 works were submitted to the application-oriented scientific project competition within the scope of SIRIUS-23. Of these, 53 experiments were selected for the research program. A significant section (18 experiments) will be devoted to psychological issues, as they are particularly important during long-term space missions. According to the scientist, the results of such research are also important for those who remain on Earth, as the latest situation with the Covid-19 epidemic has forced people to find themselves in similar isolation conditions.
Great attention is also paid to microbiology – 11 studies will be devoted to it during SIRIUS-23, affecting both the microbiome of the trial participants and their environment. Other research will relate to cells, genetics, medicine and other scientific fields.
Oleg Orlov, head of the SIRIUS-23 project, added that the experiment was carried out with the participation and support of experts from different countries, including Belarus, India, Turkey, Czech Republic, Canada, USA, Italy and others.
The mission involves a lunar flight simulation involving the search for a landing site, the descent of four crew members to conduct operations on the surface, and remote control of the lunar rover. The team will also have to deal with various emergencies, reproduced in accordance with the experience of the International Space Station.
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