Russia is planning to carry out tests on cosmonauts immediately after they return from the International Space Station (ISS) in order to prepare for future lunar and planetary exploration.
Under future plans crew will remain at the site where they land for one or two days, the vice director of the Institute for Biomedical Problems told Interfax news agency. The space travellers will remain in a special environment "as if they were on another planet."
Usually, astronauts and cosmonauts are met by doctors and other specialists right after landing in Kazakhstan, following a descent to Earth of several hours. The medics check their physical state and how they handled being in a weightless environment. The space personnel then return home after the checks.
Russia seeks to send cosmonauts to the moon although there is no timeframe for these plans. Eventually, Russia seeks to gradually construct a lunar space station by 2040.
