Doctor makes shock admission about what could happen to ‘stranded’ astronauts’ bodies after over 9 months in space
Spending so much time in space is dangerous for your body
It’s nearly time for stranded astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to finally return from the International Space Station back to Earth, but one doctor has revealed a shocking admission regarding what happens to their bodies after spending 9 months in space.
The eyes of the world have been fixed on Williams and Wilmore’s strange and arduous trip to the International Space Station (ISS), as what was supposed to just be a simple eight day mission back in June 2024 has continued for over nine months now.
Issues with both their Boeing Starliner and the SpaceX Crew-10 Dragon spacecraft that would allow them to return home have left them ‘stranded’ upon the ISS, and only next week will they finally return back home to their families – something that has been extremely challenging for Williams.
Williams and Wilmore have been ‘stranded’ upon the ISS since June last year (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
While there has been significant debate surrounding the reason for the delay, with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk placing the blame on the former Biden administration for the hold up after US President Donald Trump asked him to ‘go get’ the pair, but the most important thing for now is that their long wait is nearly over.
It’s not all sunshine and roses though, as their return could indicate some major health problems that come as a part of spending such a long time in space.
During their stay on the International Space Station many began to grow concerned about their appearance – Thankfully NASA clarified that everything is fine and there’s nothing to worry about, but there remains a major issue that they’ll both have to power through almost immediately after landing.
Much like the Crew-8 astronauts that returned last October, Williams and Wilmore will have to be immediately admitted to a medical facility on stretchers, in which they will undertake a six-week rehabilitation program in order to regain their strength.
Suni Williams has previously commented on the challenges that she’ll have to face in relearning how to walk, and they’ve both had to undertake rigorous exercises while on board the ISS in order to avoid a dangerous health condition.
Both astronauts will be immediately taken to a medical rehabilitation facility after they land back on Earth (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
In an interview with the Daily Mail, pulmonologist and Air Force veteran Dr. Vinay Gupta has revealed why spending time in space can be dangerous for the health of astronauts:
“The human body needs the Earth’s gravitational pull, and in absence of that, a lot of things are not functioning correctly,” explains Dr. Gupta. “The reality is, they’re effectively getting a fraction of the sort of exercise that we all take for granted just by walking in [Earth’s] gravity. Invariably, despite them doing all the right things {which I know they are) you’re going to see a decrease in muscle mass and strength – no question.”
On top of this, Dr. Gupta has expressed his concerns around the radiation that Williams and Wilmore will have been exposed to, prompting physicians to conduct “:a more proactive strategy for cancer screening,” just to be extra careful.
Brutal rehab NASA’s ‘stranded’ astronauts will face upon return to Earth after 9 months in space
Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were only supposed to be on the ISS for eight days
The elongated saga of Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore could soon be coming to an end, as NASA is finally due to rescue the pair of astronauts. Williams and Wilmore have become the face of space after they were marooned on the International Space Station last year. Although Williams has reiterated they aren’t stranded, their eight-day mission aboard the ISS was massively extended due to a fault with their Boeing Starliner capsule, which forced it to fly back without them.
As the days tick by, Williams and Wilmore have currently been aboard the ISS for 272 days…and counting.
Williams and Wilmore are finally set to be rescued in March 2025 (NASA)
Things are finally wrapping up following calls from President Donald Trump for Elon Musk to go and get them, Musk claiming they were abandoned by the Biden administration, and the world’s richest man calling one famed astronaut an ‘idiot’.
SpaceX‘s long-awaited Crew-10 launch is scheduled for March 12, with the dynamic duo finally set to get their feet back on terra firma. After this, there are expected to be some major adjustments to life back on Earth.
Williams has explained the brutal daily regime they’re undertaking in space, involving two hours of exercise to stop help try and combat damage to their bones and muscle.
We already knew there would be a physical toll trying to return to ‘normal’ life, but speaking to DailyMail.com, doctors have explained a little more about what Williams and Wilmore might have to deal with.
As soon as Williams and Wilmore emerge from their capsule, they’re expected to be put on stretchers and rushed away for medical examination.
Dr Vinay Gupta is a pulmonologist and Air Force veteran who claims it could take up to six weeks of brutal regimens to regain their strength.
This will start as soon as they’re back on Earth and initially focus on walking, as well as flexibility and muscle strengthening. The second phase of the 45-day regime involves proprioceptive exercises and cardio reconditioning. The third and final phase is the longest, focusing on returning them to peak physical performance via ‘functional development training’.
This photo of NASA astronaut Suni Williams goes pretty hard. 📸: NASA
Given that Williams and Wilmore have been exposed to the equivalent of one year’s of Earth radiation during a single week in space, Gupta added: “‘If I was their physician, I would think about a more proactive strategy for cancer screening…We want to take a different approach here, given that they had such a unique exposure history.”
With research suggesting that an astronaut aged between 30 and 50 can lose about half their strength following a six-month period in space, biomedical engineer Dr. John Jaquish goes on to explain the effects of low gravity on bone and muscle loss: “The human body needs the Earth’s gravitational pull, and in an absence of that, a lot of things are not functioning correctly.”
Despite their exercise regime, Gupta added: “The reality is, they’re effectively getting a fraction of the sort of exercise that we all take for granted just by walking in [Earth’s] gravity.
“Invariably, despite them doing all the right things (which I know they are), you’re going to see a decrease in muscle mass and strength — no question.”
Although most astronauts can get back to their pre-mission fitness after just 45 days, it can sometimes take months or even years to return to where they were.
Scientists are warning that the International Space Station (ISS) might be too clean – and that’s a problem.
Astronauts at the ISS face all kinds of challenges, from radiation exposure to muscle loss due to weightlessness and, of course, the psychological effects of isolation.
But now scientists have identified an unexpected risk.
According to a new study, the astronauts on board the orbiting outpost could benefit from it being a little less clean.
The research suggests that the space station’s sterile environment could be contributing to immune problems, skin conditions and other health issues experienced by astronauts during long missions. This is because the microbe environment in space is very different to here on Earth.
SEBASTIAN KAULITZKI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Getty
On Earth, humans are exposed to a diverse range of microbes on a regular basis. But in space, microbial diversity is severely limited, the study shows.
The microbes that do exist on the ISS primarily come from the astronauts themselves, which means they’re basically stewing in their own bacteria without any input from the natural world.
As strange as it may seem, the team believe there’s some benefit to the astronauts ‘dirtying’ the ISS with more microbes from nature, researchers suggest. This is similar to how gardening has been shown to boost the immune system by exposing people to healthy soil bacteria.
“There’s a big difference between exposure to healthy soil from gardening versus stewing in our own filth, which is kind of what happens if we’re in a strictly enclosed environment with no ongoing input of those healthy sources of microbes from the outside,” said Rob Knight, from UC San Diego.
Ted Horowitz Photography / Getty
In the study, scientists worked with astronauts to swab 803 different surfaces in the ISS – 100 times more than in previous studies. From this, they created 3D maps that showed where different microbes and chemical residues were concentrated.
What they found was that human skin was the main source of microbes throughout the ISS.
Cleaning products and disinfectants were also present throughout the station.
Interestingly, different modules in the spacecraft had distinct microbial communities – with food-related microbes more common in dining areas.
They also discovered that the ISS’ microbial environment was similar to that of a hospital, in which it lacks the free-living microbes found in soil, water and open-air environments. If astronauts are already experiencing health issues from a lack of microbial diversity on the ISS, what happens during longer missions to the Moon or Mars?
Either way, the study has shown the need for a more balanced microbial environment in space, which could mean that scientists will discover ways to intentionally introduce bacteria to future spacecraft
Donald Trump makes wild new claim about NASA astronauts who have been left in space for 275 days
President Trump has focused on one particular part of the stranded astronauts
You’d think that everything that could be said about stranded NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams had already been said, but US President Donald Trump’s wild new claim certainly breaks new ground.
Retrieving the pair from space has been one of President Trump’s key priorities following his return to the Oval Office, as they have been ‘stranded’ on the International Space Station (ISS) since June 2024 after what was supposed to be just an eight-day mission.
Issues surrounding both their own Boeing Starliner ship and the SpaceX Crew-10 Dragon spacecraft that would allow them to return home have significantly delayed their trip back to Earth, although Elon Musk has repeatedly made his own alternative claims surrounding the hold up.
Williams and Wilmore have been stuck on the International Space Station for eight months now (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The SpaceX CEO has argued that it was the fault of the Biden administration, as he supposedly was ready to bring them back but was denied the opportunity due to Biden’s unwillingness to cooperate with him.
These statements have been contrastingly confirmed and denied by Butch Wilmore himself, but what remains is that President Trump has now issued Musk to ‘go get’ the pair as soon as possible.
Their extended time in space appears to have led the president to make a wild new claim though, as he has insinuated that Williams and Wilmore might have ‘fallen in love’ in the eight months they’ve spent aboard the ISS:
“You know they’ve been left up there, I hope they like each other,” Trump wondered in a statement in the Oval Office, adding “maybe they’ll love each other, I don’t know.”
While that certainly would make a fitting and original space-based romance on the silver screen, and the pair have shared more than one special meal with each other, it’s rather unlikely that the lengthy stay has made them fall in love.
Trump also appeared to go on a bizarre tangent about Suni Williams hair, which is notable for it’s flowing appearance thanks to the low gravity surroundings.
“And I see the woman with the wild hair,” Trump claimed in reference to Williams. “Good solid head hair she’s got. There’s no kidding. There’s no games with her hair.”
Suni Williams’ hair is noticeably ‘wild’ thanks to the low gravity conditions (Youtube/NASA Video)
If he’s expecting her hair to remain as equally ‘wild’ when she’s back on Earth though he’ll be sorely disappointed!
The return to normal gravity conditions won’t just affect Williams’ hair though, as both have outlined the difficulties that the change will make to their body. Remembering how to walk will be a particularly challenging endeavor, but they’ve both been doing brutal daily exercises to avoid any dangerous long-term health effects
‘Stranded’ NASA Astronaut Sunita Williams reveals heartbreaking ‘hardest part’ of being stuck in space
The end is finally in sight
Spending months in space might sound like the ultimate adventure, but for NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, the experience came with an unexpected emotional toll.
Williams, who was only supposed to be on an eight-day mission, has now been in space for over 270 days after a series of technical failures left her and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore stranded on the International Space Station (ISS).
Responding to a press question from the ISS on as part of a pre-departure news conference, from 6:06 in the video above: Williams revealed: “the hardest part of being stuck in space wasn’t the weightlessness or the isolation — it was the uncertainty of when she’d be able to come home”.
“The hardest part is having the folks on the ground not know exactly when we’re coming back. It’s been a rollercoaster for them – probably more so than for us,” she added.
Williams and Wilmore launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner on June 5, 2024, for what was supposed to be a quick trip to the ISS. But things quickly went south when the spacecraft experienced multiple technical failures.
NASA later deemed it too unsafe to bring them back, forcing the astronauts to stay aboard the station while alternative plans were made. Starliner was eventually sent back to Earth without them in September, leaving them quite literally without a ride home.
Now, after months of uncertainty, NASA has confirmed that the two astronauts will finally return to Earth on March 19 or 20. But instead of Boeing bringing them back, they’ll be catching a lift with Elon Musk’s SpaceX on the Crew-9 return flight.
SpaceX & Tesla CEO, Elon Musk (Getty Images)
The extended stay has sparked major controversy back on Earth, with Elon Musk suggesting that the delay was politically motivated. Former US President Donald Trump echoed the claims, accusing the Biden administration of deliberately holding them in space longer than necessary.
Despite the swirling speculation, Williams and Wilmore have largely avoided getting dragged into the politics of it all. When asked about the controversy, Williams simply responded, “We know what we’ve lived up here. We have the utmost respect for everyone trying to get us home.”
Wilmore, however, admitted that he and Williams have been kept in the dark regarding the politics of their situation. Referring to Musk’s claim, he said: “That’s information that we simply don’t have, so I believe him”.
For now, the focus remains on getting the astronauts back safely. After spending nearly a year in space, their long-awaited return is finally in sight.
