John McFall is studying whether it's possible for someone with a physical disability to go to space.
Former Paralympian John McFall is working with the European Space Agency on a ground-breaking study to see if it's feasible for someone with a physical disability to live and work in space. BBC News has been following his progress as he undergoes astronaut training.
"The astronaut is basically lying on their back in a sort of seated position, so this influences the blood flow - also in the leg. We were curious to see how that would affect him, but it went really well."John's paused his career as an orthopaedic surgeon to take a leap into the unknown of astronaut training.He isn't guaranteed a space flight, but this study will see what needs adapting to make it possible - the spacecraft, spacesuits or his various prosthetic legs.
"There would be a prosthesis for running, a back up for the microprocessor prosthesis, and then there's the mechanical one, which will probably need to be worn inside the spacesuit for launch and return," he explains.ESA is the first space agency to carry out a project like this. The move to Germany is a big change for his wife Sonia, a former Olympic gymnast, and their three young children Fin, Isla and Immy.
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