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Human research and space biology dominated the research schedule aboard the International Space Station today. The Expedition 62 crew investigated how microgravity impacts heart and bone cells and head and eye pressure.

All three crewmembers tested a unique suit Tuesday that draws body fluids, such as blood and water, towards the feet. This counteracts space-caused fluid shifts toward the head that create pressure on an astronaut’s eyes and cranium. One visible symptom, called “puffy face,” is a redder and rounder face due to those shifts. However, astronauts have reported vision problems after living in space for months at a time.

Flight Engineer Andrew Morgan put on the suit with help from Commander Oleg Skripochka in the station’s Zvezda service module. NASA astronaut Jessica Meir then scanned Morgan’s eyes, head and chest with an ultrasound device to measure blood flow through his veins and arteries. Doctors on Earth monitored the activities to learn more about the effectiveness of the negative pressure body suit.

Morgan then moved on to cardiac research, learning how to create and culture heart cells on the space station. Results could provide advanced therapies to prevent heart conditions on Earth and in space. Meir continued more bone research servicing bone samples to help scientists better understand Earth ailments such as osteoporosis.

The commander stayed in the station’s Russian segment inventorying cargo from a Russian resupply ship. Skripochka, a veteran of three station missions, made space in the Progress 74 cargo craft temporarily stowing goods and rearranging hardware to reduce clutter aboard the orbiting lab.

The Expedition 62 crew focused on a variety of human research and space biology studies aboard the International Space Station today. Back on Earth, three new crewmembers are in training in Russia before their mission begins in April.

Microgravity shifts the flow of body fluids, such as blood and water, which accumulate in an astronaut’s head creating pressure in the cranium and on the eyes. Doctors are continuously studying this phenomenon to counteract the effects and keep long-term space crews healthy.

In preparation for upcoming operations with the ongoing Fluid Shifts study, NASA astronaut Andrew Morgan collected medical hardware, such as an ultrasound device, sensors and cables. He transferred the research gear to the Russian segment, where they will be used to test a specialized body suit that draws fluids toward the lower body expanding veins and tissues.

Morgan then moved on to a Japanese study that looks at how weightlessness affects genetic expression in mice.  Results may inform future therapies that keep crews safe in space and prevent muscle atrophy conditions on Earth.

NASA Flight Engineer Jessica Meir relaxed on Monday aboard the orbiting lab after working Saturday afternoon on cardiac research. She serviced heart cells being manipulated and analyzed with magnet-sensors and stowed them in a science freezer. The space samples are being compared to cell cultures on the ground possibly benefitting human cardiac function on Earth and in space.

Commander Oleg Skripochka began his morning on a long-running Russian study exploring how cosmonauts will pilot spacecraft and even robotic rovers on future planetary missions. During the afternoon, he turned his attention to life support maintenance.

Over in Russia, three Expedition 63 crewmembers are getting ready for their launch to the space station on April 9. NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and Roscosmos cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner wrapped up two days of Soyuz qualification exams last week. They will have a news conference this Friday before heading out to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Tuesday, March 24. Once there, the crew will be in final preparations ahead of their 195-day mission in space.