Staying in a microgravity environment makes you taller, as US astronaut Anne McClain attested to on her Twitter account. She said she gained two inches since her launch in December.
The height increase (unfortunately for some) is temporary and is caused by the spine straightening somewhat in the absence of gravity to counter.
The effect should not be overestimated too, as Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai learned last year. He said he grew a whopping 9 cm (3.5 in) taller in space before admitting that his growth was blown out of proportion due to how it was measured. The actual height increase was less than an inch.
Also on rt.com ISS astronaut shrinks from 9cm height increase claim, admitting space growth spurt was fake newsAnne McClain is in orbit with Russian space veteran Oleg Kononenko, the commander of the crew, and Canada’s David Saint-Jacques. Next week, they are to be joined by Aleksey Ovchinin, Nick Hague and Christina Koch.
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