The Future of the Astronaut and Its Impact on Our Psychology

"Four astronauts have been evacuated from the International Space Station (ISS) after their planned six-and-a-half-month visit to space was cut short by a month due to a "serious" medical issue. It's the first time astronauts have been evacuated due to a health issue since the station was put into Earth's orbit in 1998. But could this incident portend serious, longer-term implications for any future attempts to journey off the planet, visit other worlds, or survive elsewhere should our home planet eventually become uninhabitable?"

"Space travel is also in the news because the first crewed mission to the Moon since Apollo 17 landed there in December 1972, Artemis II, is expected to launch in the coming weeks. Artemis II is not scheduled to descend onto the Moon's surface, but is instead intended to help prepare for future lunar landings by astronauts, starting with the Artemis III mission."

"If it is, a provocative question might be: Why has no one from another world, who surely would be more advanced than us in technology, been able to make the trip to visit us? If our own galaxy is, statistically speaking, likely teeming with alien civilizations, since it has 500 billion stars-as many scientists believe must be the case, given its sheer size-a puzzle remains as to why we have never detected the existence of anyone else. Nor has anyone, apparently, come visiting."

Four astronauts were evacuated from the International Space Station after their six-and-a-half-month mission was cut short by a month because of a serious medical issue. This marks the first evacuation for medical reasons since the station entered Earth's orbit in 1998. An upcoming crewed mission, Artemis II, will orbit the Moon to prepare for future lunar landings beginning with Artemis III. Ambitions for human travel to the Moon, Mars, and beyond raise technical and health challenges for long-distance voyages. Statistical estimates suggest the galaxy contains about 500 billion stars, and roughly one-fifth of stars host planets in habitable zones. The apparent absence of extraterrestrial visitors or detections remains a significant puzzle for space exploration.

Read at Psychology Today