The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
Go to topicProtecting life and infrastructure on Earth and in orbit
Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet running the Grip experiment during his six-month Proxima mission on the International Space Station in 2017.
The Grip experiment studies the effects of weightlessness on the abilities of astronauts to regulate fine grip force and reaching for objects with different movements. Thomas is seen in this video grasping for objects in different ways with eyes open and closed.
Astronauts often perform delicate manoeuvres on small objects, and calculating how living in weightlessness influences their grasp and fine motor controls is important in an environment that allows little room for error.
Researchers suspect that, on Earth, the brain uses the sensations caused by gravity as a reference. When reaching for an object, for example, the brain will calculate how far your hand is by using visual clues as well as how much your shoulder muscles need to counteract the downward force of gravity and keep your arm straight.
These experiments are helpful to engineers designing prosthetic limbs on Earth.
The video is sped up 30 times.
More about the Proxima mission: http://www.esa.int/proxima
Connect with Thomas Pesquet: http://thomaspesquet.esa.int