[keep320909]

Mental issues are not uncommon. First japanese astronaut on Mir (Russian commercial passenger on Mir) had mental break down, and had to be restrained on the way back. It was in some Russian archives...

Skylab and Sojuz had astronauts on strike...

EDIT: it was not ISS, but Mir!

[klodolph]

The “astronauts on strike” story of Skylab 4, to me, seems like more of a rational response to harsh working conditions, which somehow got exaggerated in the media.

The previous mission, Skylab 3, accomplished much more than was expected—completing something like 50% additional work compared to what was scheduled.

Skylab 4’s schedule was then both lengthened and accelerated. The mission grew by about 50% in duration, and tasks were scheduled for astronauts at the beginning of the mission at a pace that didn’t allow for solid blocks of rest and didn’t account for acclimation (it assumed astronauts would be operating at full efficiency, and didn’t allow them time to acclimate to orbital conditions, didn’t allow them time to recover from errors or deal with equipment malfunctions).

There was no “strike”. That’s a myth. There was a conference between astronauts and the ground to alter the schedule—make sure astronauts have sufficient off-duty periods, allow astronauts time to transition from one task to the next, give astronauts time when they are waking up or falling asleep.

The flight director, Neil Hutchinson, later said that ground controllers erred when they made the plans for Skylab 4. Skylab 4 still accomplished more in space than was planned!

[HarHarVeryFunny]

I'd imagine they are likely to be more of an issue too in the future, for longer term or more risky missions to Mars/etc. NASA try to select people who are highly stable as astronauts (used to be test pilots), but when the mission only has a 25% chance of getting you home, or involves you living on Mars for a year in a garden shed, then the people who would want to volunteer are going to tend to be mentally off to begin with.

I assume they've thought of this, even for lunar missions or ISS - I wonder what the protocol is? Do they bring handcuffs? Sedatives?

[mzs]

What archives? I've just done some reading regarding Акияма Тоёхиро but saw no reference to a breakdown.

[keep320909]

It was in a book by Karel Pacner, he studied Russian archives after they were declassified. Not sure what book.

[mzs]

I think you misremember. The opening of Russian archives was in in the mid '90s and here is an article coauthored by Pacner from 2007. It covers Tojohiro Akijama trip in full but does not mention any restraint pon the return trip:

- Akijama si vezl šest kamer a fotoaparát. Avšak let snášel obtížně, navíc mu jako silnému kuřákovi chyběly cigarety. Sověti požadovali za každou hodinu vysílání z vesmíru milion dolarů, to bylo i na Japonce příliš mnoho, proto reportér odvysílal pouze jednu desetiminutovou televizní relaci a dvě rozhlasové reportáže.

- Po přistání tvrdil, že má hlad, ale první, po čem sáhl, bylo pivo a cigareta.k let snášel obtížně, navíc mu jako silnému kuřákovi chyběly cigarety. …

I also believe there to be an error above cause when I was a child I felt that there were more than one broadcast, but that could be my own memory misleading me.

https://www.idnes.cz/technet/vesmir/kosmicka-stavebnice-mir-...

[keep320909]

I remember my source was from book, not article. Also I remember it was grouped with rant about female journalist, who was much better candidate (amateur pilot I think), but her boss went instead.

Flight was around 1993, it was declassified a few years latter, perhaps 1997.