Disabled British astronaut John McFall cleared to travel into space
Disabled astronaut John McFall has been cleared to go into space after a two-year feasibility study concluded that his prosthetic leg will not stop him carrying out all his duties.
The British paralympian made history by becoming the European Space Agency’s (ESA) first parastronaut when he was selected in November 2022.
There are nearly 100 requirements that astronauts must pass to be able to fly, including moving safely around the International Space Station (ISS) and SpaceX Crew Dragon module, being able to carry out emergency procedures and experiments, fitting into space suits and maintaining good health in orbit.
On Friday the ESA announced that there were “no technical showstoppers” which would prevent Mr McFall from flying on a long duration mission to the ISS.
Mr Mcfall said: “This doesn’t guarantee a flight opportunity but we have demonstrated that we’ve done all the work to prove that it would be technically feasible for someone with my disability to fly.
“The expectation is that the person with this physical disability who would fly would aim to be a fully integrated crew member on the International Space Station, so this isn’t just carrying out day to day tasks on the space station.
“It’s about being a valuable, useful member of the crew undertaking all activities, including emergency and safety procedures, in keeping with what every other crew member would be expected to do.”
Initially it was thought that wearing a prosthesis in space may not be necessary, but the study has shown it will prove crucial for maintaining balance, and for being able to evacuate quickly in an emergency.
The prosthetic leg is also necessary to allow Mr McFall to exercise on a long duration mission of at least six months, and use the exercise equipment on board the ISS, such as the treadmill and stationary bike, to prevent his muscles from wasting away in microgravity.
The team is still working on making sure the prosthesis will fit in space, where Mr McFall’s legs could shrink or expand. It’s also important that it is made of a material that will not give off potentially toxic fumes.
He has been undergoing experiments in Cologne on tilt tables in which he is tipped at an angle with his head lower than his feet to mimic the effect of fluid rising up the body in microgravity.
Mr McFall added: “We identified quite early on in the study that for certain aspects of spaceflight, I would have to wear my prosthesis so I will have to wear a prosthesis at launch, which means wearing it inside the spacesuit.
“And I would also have to wear a prosthesis on orbit to undertake the exercise countermeasures to protect my body from the effects of microgravity. So I will be wearing a prosthesis in space.
“There is a very rigorous safety review process to meet the existing safety requirements of the space station and it will be quite a significant part of the work making sure that any prosthetic hardware complies with all these regulations.
“We’re looking at taking a number of different types of prosthetic hardware to undertake different aspects of day to day life living and working in space.”
Mr McFall, 43, who was born in Surrey and grew up in Somerset, had his right leg amputated when he was 19 after a motorbike accident. After learning to run again, he became a professional athlete, winning bronze in the 2008 Beijing Paralympics in the 100 metres T42 event.
He also retrained as a doctor, working in the NHS for several years, and has recently completed his final exams specialising as an orthopaedic surgeon.
Despite being put through numerous tests during training, Mr McFall said the biggest challenge had nothing to do with his disability, but rather suffering seasickness while training in the Baltic.
“Sea survival was the most uncomfortable because despite it being in the Baltic, it was still about 30 degrees and we were wearing full neoprene hooded gloved suits and it was absolutely boiling,” he said.
“Being in this 12-man emergency raft doing emergency medical procedures. That was pretty uncomfortable.
“And when you’re inside the raft, you can’t see the horizon and you’re generally going up and down on the water so there was a little bit of nausea and the environment was quite difficult to work in, and that was probably the most uncomfortable, but it was unrelated to my disability.”
The feasibility study, named Fly!, was designed to ensure that space exploration is not limited by physical disability.
Jerome Reineix, the Fly! feasibility study manager, said: “We are really glad to announce that at this stage our work has identified that there are no technical showstoppers at this stage to fly in John McFall on the long duration missions.”
Daniel Neuenschwander, director of human and robotic exploration at ESA, added: “A key conclusion is that there is no fundamental difference with another crew member for a long duration mission.”