SpaceX Crew-12 will study microgravity's effects on the human body

SpaceX Crew-12, scheduled to launch no earlier than Feb. 11, will carry four crew to the ISS where select members will take part in human research including a Venous Flow study of clot risk and tests of piloting, vision, and landing-related injuries.

NASA is preparing the SpaceX Crew-12 mission for launch to the International Space Station no earlier than Feb. 11. The flight will carry four crewmembers and include a set of human research investigations. These studies are designed to examine how the body changes in microgravity and during transitions back to gravity environments such as the Moon, Mars, and Earth. Key details: - The Crew-12 roster includes NASA astronauts Jessica Meir (commander) and Jack Hathaway (pilot), ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot (mission specialist), and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev (mission specialist). - The Venous Flow study will use ultrasound imaging to examine whether time in microgravity raises the likelihood of blood clots by changing circulatory patterns and fluid shifts toward the head. - The Manual Piloting study will test piloting and decision-making after gravitational transitions, including simulated Moon landings, to assess disorientation and crew ability to manually control a vehicle. - Crew members will undergo preflight and postflight MRIs, ultrasound scans, blood draws, and blood pressure checks; during flight they will perform jugular vein ultrasounds, blood pressure checks, and draw blood samples for later analysis. - Additional investigations will examine spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS) and document injuries associated with landing and the return to Earth gravity. - NASA's Human Research Program is overseeing the investigations; prior runs recruited small groups for short (up to 30 days) and longer (around 106 days) missions to provide comparative data. Summary: The studies on Crew-12 will collect physiological and performance data during and after the mission to better characterize changes from microgravity and gravitational transitions. The mission is slated to launch no earlier than Feb. 11 and the findings are intended to inform NASA planning for extended stays in low Earth orbit and for future Moon and Mars mission architectures.