{"id":801585,"date":"2026-04-09T13:06:29","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T18:06:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=801585"},"modified":"2026-04-09T13:06:29","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T18:06:29","slug":"artemis-ii-astronauts-work-out-on-the-flywheel-npr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=801585","title":{"rendered":"Artemis II astronauts work out on the flywheel : NPR"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\n The Artemis II crew \u2014 Christina Koch (left), Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman \u2014 have to share tight quarters aboard the Orion spacecraft on their way home. But even with limited space, they can still get a solid workout in \u2014 thanks to a very special piece of equipment.
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Even a few days away from Earth can significantly alter the human body. Without the constant pull of gravity on the skeleton, muscle and bone can quickly atrophy. To combat this immediate physical decline, the four astronauts aboard Orion on the Artemis II mission are using a specially designed machine known as the flywheel.<\/p>\n

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In a video blog posted before the crew launched, Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen compares the flywheel to a rowing machine. “Like a cardiovascular workout where you row at a lower resistance and a fast pace,” Hansen explains as he demonstrates the flywheel’s functionality. Astronauts strap their feet onto a small platform and pull on a handle connected to a cable. Pulling spins a flywheel. It works like a yo-yo, according to NASA \u2014 astronauts get as much resistance as they put into it.<\/p>\n

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\n The Artemis II crew exercises on Orion using a flywheel, a simple cable-based device for aerobic and resistance workouts.
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The flywheel is small, not unlike an extra large shoebox. Working in Orion’s tight quarters \u2014 only 316 cubic feet , about the size of a smallish bedroom \u2014 engineers had to design this device to perform with utmost efficiency, so that it can both provide a cardiovascular workout and resistance exercises up to 400 pounds. Astronauts can use it to do weightlifting moves like squats, deadlifts and curls.<\/p>\n