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Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is currently in the International Space Station (ISS). He has reached the space station under the Axiom-4 Mission of NASA, ISRO, European Space Agency and private company Axiom Space. Shubhanshu Shukla is the second person to step into space and the first Indian to reach the ISS. There are many astronauts present in the International Space Station at all times and from time to time astronauts are called back to Earth and new people are sent to space. Many people spend months in the space station, while some astronauts have to stay there for a long time.
By June 2025, more than 280 astronauts from more than 20 countries of the world have visited the International Space Station (ISS). These astronauts live in microgravity conditions in Earth’s orbit for several weeks and months. The main objective of these missions is scientific experiments and global cooperation. Astronauts are also humans and humans fall ill.
What happens if an astronaut falls ill in space?
There is no hospital or emergency room in space. However, space agencies make full preparations for medical emergencies. Astronauts are given first aid training before going into space and necessary medical devices are available on the ISS. In every mission, an astronaut is nominated as a ‘crew medical officer,’ who usually has medical training, although he is not a doctor. This medical officer has a medical kit, which contains pain medications, antibiotics, allergy medications, portable ultrasound device, defibrillator and CPR equipment.
Why CPR is not possible?
According to NASA, it is difficult to perform CPR in zero gravity because it becomes difficult to press the chest in space. For this, there is a special device or arrangement to tie the legs so that CPR can be given. If an astronaut faces any serious problem in space, then the astronaut is not alone. Telemedical assistance is provided by doctors through real time video and audio from NASA’s Mission Control Center. Based on the biometric data received from the ISS, the doctors give them step-by-step instructions. With the help of this, the astronaut is treated.
What is the provision for emergency services?
If an astronaut’s health deteriorates and treatment is not possible on the ISS, there is a provision for emergency evacuation. There is always at least one Soyuz or SpaceX Dragon capsule docked on the ISS, which can bring an astronaut back to Earth in 3-5 hours. Usually this capsule lands in the plains of Kazakhstan. From there, the patient is immediately admitted to the medical center of NASA or the Russian Space Agency. However, this emergency evacuation arrangement is kept as a last resort, because some diseases can worsen after returning to Earth’s gravity. In more than 20 years of operation of the ISS, no astronaut has yet had to be brought back due to a medical emergency.
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