The Toulouse Space Clinic is recruiting volunteers to conduct a study on the impact of physical exercise, coupled with centrifuge sessions, to fight against the effects of micro-gravity.
The twelve recruits, men aged 20 to 45 in good health and with 88 days left next spring, will remain bedridden for two months with their heads tilted slightly downwards.
The volunteers, who can already join the ranks, will be compensated 18,000 euros.
Should astronauts ride a bit more bikes when in space to better cushion the consequences of weightlessness?
During each of his stays on the International Space Station, Thomas Pesquet forced himself to run or even pedal, more than two hours a day, just to keep in shape.
But above all in order to limit bone and muscle loss due to weightlessness.
Is this rhythm the best for the body of the astronauts?
Should other measures be put in place to prevent any risk to their health?
To prepare for future space flights, the Toulouse Space Clinic (MEDES) regularly carries out studies by subjecting volunteers to the simulation of microgravity, while of course they are on solid ground.
Test the effects of cycling
A little over five years ago, ten men spent two months lying down, their bodies tilted at 6 degrees, to see if a mixture of antioxidants and anti-inflammatories could have any benefit.
In the spring, a new operation of the same kind, called BRACE, for
Bed rest with artificial gravity and cycling exercise
, will take place.
🧑🚀🚀 Want to participate in space research?
We are recruiting volunteers for a clinical study of weightlessness simulation, using the #bedrest model!
Information here 👉https://t.co/S94yqokPEA@CNES @esaspaceflight @ESA_fr #bedrest #astronaut #health pic.twitter.com/Le9XnOpuLT
– MEDES-IMPS (@Medes_IMPS) January 16, 2023
Access to this content has been blocked to respect your choice of consent
By clicking on "
I ACCEPT
", you accept the deposit of cookies by external services and will thus have access to the content of our partners
I ACCEPT
And to better remunerate 20 Minutes, do not hesitate to accept all cookies, even for one day only, via our "I accept for today" button in the banner below.
More information on the Cookie Management Policy page.
The twelve men who will be selected will not have to send themselves a cocktail of pills for breakfast before settling comfortably on their tilted bed to watch the latest TV series.
For this new study, part of the 12 reckless will have to ride a bicycle, sometimes even when they find themselves in a centrifuge that rotates at full speed.
“We want to test the effectiveness of physical exercise coupled with artificial gravity, ie centrifugation.
By drawing lots, one third of the volunteers will ride a bicycle coupled to the centrifuge six days out of seven, one third only on the bicycle and one third will not have any exercise and will serve as a control", indicates Arnaud Beck, one of the coordinating doctors of the 'study.
Fourteen scientific teams will take advantage of this experience to look closely at the impact of micro-gravity, simulated by reclined bed rest, on metabolism, from the eyes to the myocardium, via the brain.
The twelve volunteers will be examined from every angle and will benefit from a more than complete check-up.
Compensation of 18,000 euros
An extraordinary study financed by the European Space Agency and the CNES which has just launched the recruitment of its first recruits, since a second campaign will also take place next year.
To apply, you don't have to have a CV as long as your arm.
But some criteria are still required.
You must be between 20 and 45 years old, be in perfect health, exercise regularly, have a body mass index between 20 and 27, not smoke, not have any allergies or dietary restrictions.
Those who failed at the gates of
Koh-Lanta
, free for 88 days next spring, can already join the ranks.
Just like those who have an interest in science or the conquest of space.
During their stay at the space clinic, on the Rangueil hospital site, these twelve men will spend 60 days lying down, their heads slightly lower than their feet.
But they will also follow a battery of exams two weeks before, as well as a recovery during the fortnight following sunrise.
Those who join do not do so solely for the glory and love of space: compensation of 18,000 euros is provided by Medes.
Science
Toulouse: From their bathtubs, they prepare the future flights of female astronauts
Science
Trendy space and not claustrophobic?
This job to simulate lunar flights is (perhaps) for you
Science
Toulouse
Occitania
Space
Astronaut
CNES
ISS
Hospital
Experience