Three astronauts, Kjell Lindgren of NASA, Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency, and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency are to join the ISS league, which already includes 200 astronauts who have visited in ISS. They are to join engineers, Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko, and Expedition 44 commander Gennady Padalka, for a one year flight to space.

Why are they undertaking this mission? Yes, unbelievable as it may sound, but this journey is to test the growth of crops in outer space! They are to harvest and cultivate lettuce. While, the astronauts are allowed to consume half of the harvest, the other frozen half has to make it safely back to earth for NASA to test and analyze the outcome.

The testing for the behaviour of liquid crystals in outer space, will also take place simultaneously. This is to create better screens for both, those us out for spacewalks, and the inhabitants of earth.

This launch with Lindgren, Kononenko and Yui is not before December. In the five months to go, they will be undergoing a series of experiments to solve the health problems faced by astronauts in space, including frequent headaches, on account of the pressure changes on the skull in outer space.

Author:Technology Blog