Columbus ISS module: Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski works and sleeps there

The sleeping area of ​​the Columbus module on board the ISS is quite cozy, like a capsule hotel - Adrian Belli from ESA told PAP. It is in the Columbus module that Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski sleeps and does most of his work.

The Polish astronaut and the crew of the Ax-4 mission in the Dragon capsule docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on June 26. As part of the IGNIS mission, he is to conduct a total of 13 technological and scientific experiments.

The Columbus module, launched in 2008, is a laboratory almost 7 meters long and 4.5 meters in diameter, weighing (without cargo) about 10 tons. Inside, there are specialized research stations that allow experiments to be conducted in microgravity. It is here that Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski performs most of his tasks, and also has a bedroom.

Columbus' equipment includes a laboratory for testing fluids in microgravity, an electromagnetic levitator for testing metals, and physiological and biological laboratories. The research equipment is housed in special cabinets (so-called "racks") built into the walls of the module.

The main command point for the IGNIS mission is located at ESA’s Columbus Control Centre (Col-CC) at the German DLR research facility in Oberpfaffenhofen, near Munich. It is the operations centre for the Columbus module – the European laboratory on the International Space Station.

Experiments in the Columbus module are carried out not only by astronauts – some of them are controlled remotely by scientists from Earth.

At night, Columbus becomes a private resting space for the Polish astronaut. He is not observed and can turn off or dim the lights in the module to create conditions for sleep.

This week, Uznański-Wiśniewski posted photos and commentary on social media showing what his sleeping area looks like. "I don't have a bed on the ISS, but I do have my own 'bedroom.' CASA is located in the Columbus module and is the size of a telephone booth. I sleep in a sleeping bag attached to the wall," he wrote.

Adrian Belli, STRATOS flight controller responsible for Columbus at ESA, explained to PAP that CASA is an additional sleeping space, used when there are more astronauts than usual on the station. The sleeping space slides out from the ceiling – although in microgravity conditions the concepts of ceiling, wall and floor are conventional.

Belli compares: "It's like a capsule hotel - there's a bit of headroom and sideroom. It's quite cosy and there's enough room to move around."

The remaining members of the Axe-4 mission do not have this luxury – they sleep in other parts of the station, pinning their sleeping bags to selected surfaces, such as the ceiling or wall, so as not to drift and hit their heads on something while sleeping.

Astronauts don't use mattresses - in microgravity there's no body pressure on the ground, so you can sleep on hard surfaces. "The only pressure you feel is the pressure you create by pressing yourself against something. Otherwise you float slightly and nothing interferes," Bella pointed out.

Because the station is warm, astronauts often cover themselves only partially—or not at all. Belli pointed out that sleeping without gravity takes some getting used to—there’s no weight of a blanket or quilt that wraps around your body, and that’s not the case on the ISS.

During Wednesday's call with Uznański-Wiśniewski, he admitted that he initially had trouble falling asleep: "I didn't touch any surface, I just floated around in the cabin. It took me a few nights to get myself a place with good ventilation. Now I sleep quite well," he wrote on social media.

"Like every astronaut, I have 8 hours allocated for sleep after a day full of uninterrupted work. But sleep can be a challenge for astronauts. That's why it's also time for our experiments - we are investigating, among other things, how the quality of sleep changes under the influence of stress and microgravity," wrote the Polish astronaut.

From Oberpfaffenhofen by Ludwik Tomal (PAP)

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