Life in the microgravity environment of the International Space Station (ISS) is not easy; even tasks that seem ordinary can pose significant challenges for astronauts.
Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti practicing yoga on the International Space Station.
Regardless of the inconveniences, astronauts aboard the ISS must maintain daily routines similar to those on Earth, including eating, showering, washing their hair, and using the restroom.
Yoga exercises, with their challenging poses and movements, are also practiced by astronauts, but in a very unique way.
Recently, Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti shared an intriguing video demonstrating how she practices yoga in the microgravity environment of the ISS.
The video shows Samantha using two special straps or securing both feet to the floor of the spacecraft to stabilize her body and prevent floating while performing yoga poses. However, for some positions and movements, Samantha can let her body float freely in the microgravity environment without any issues.
The clip showcasing Samantha’s yoga practice went viral after being posted on social media, delighting many netizens. Samantha herself expressed hope that the video would inspire others to practice yoga for health and flexibility.
Born in 1977, Samantha Cristoforetti is an astronaut with the European Space Agency (ESA) and a former pilot and engineer in the Italian Air Force. She was officially selected and trained as an astronaut by ESA in 2009 from a pool of 8,000 applicants.
Samantha is the first woman from Italy to travel to space, launched to the ISS aboard the Russian spacecraft Soyuz TMA-15M in November 2014 at the age of 37.
She also holds the record for the longest continuous time spent by a European astronaut on the ISS, with a total of 199 days and 16 hours. Previously, she held the record for the longest time spent in space by a female astronaut until surpassed by American astronauts Peggy Whitson and Christina Koch.
To date, Samantha has flown to the ISS twice. After her first flight in 2014, she returned to the ISS on April 27, 2022. On July 21, she performed her first spacewalk, lasting 7 hours and 5 minutes.
