The Race to the First Wheelchair User in Space
Have you ever heard of a wheelchair user deployed for a space mission? As of today, the first disabled astronaut, John McFall, has only participated in flying exercises and has been medically cleared for long-duration International Space Station missions.
As we wait to see when John will be sent for a space mission, Michaela Benthaus, an aerospace engineer, has been announced as one of six passengers for Blue Origin's next space tourism launch. That means she will become the first wheelchair user ever to reach space.
Can People in Wheelchairs Go to Space?
There’s no limitation on people in wheelchairs going to space, according to the new studies being carried out by different private and government space institutions. Disabled astronauts, artists, and aerospace students have been tested to determine the suitability of persons with disabilities for space travel in near-weightless parabolic flights.
In a parabolic flight, a specialised aircraft, while in the sky, makes an alternating upward and downward motion to simulate weightlessness, an experience similar to space travel.
Studies done after parabolic flight tests on persons with disabilities have proven that wheelchair users can go to space. This has been in an article published on the Conversion website. In the near future, we’ll most likely see people with different disabilities in the crew cabin going to space.
From 2022, the number of wheelchair users being approved to participate in feasibility studies on space accessibility has been increasing. Deaf persons have already been taken to outer space for experiments, and the results proved that the participants were “immune” to motion sickness on the participants according to NASA.
The First Wheelchair User in Space
Michaela Benthaus is a wheelchair user and an aerospace and mechatronics engineer at the European Space Agency. She has dedicated her career to advancing interplanetary exploration through scientific collaboration.
She became a wheelchair user about 7 years ago, after a mountain biking accident resulted in a spinal cord injury that limited her mobility. However, she has not let her wheelchair deter her, continuing to pursue the ideal of space accessibility and advocating for broader participation in space exploration. In 2022, Michi completed a simulated astronaut mission aboard a zero-gravity research flight. Outside of work, she remains actively involved in various sports, including wheelchair tennis.
Besides Michaela, Mary Cooper, an astronaut trainer and a former worker at SpaceX, is a wheelchair user (above-knee amputee) who has also been tested on parabolic flights in the Mobility Crew on AA1 together with other differently abled persons.
Individuals with mobility challenges have near-zero gravity experiences, which is a right space towards advancing persons with disability in space travel.
First Physically Disabled Astronaut Cleared for Space Mission Travel
Different space agency institutions, such as NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), have funded research on how people with physical disabilities can access spaceflight. AstroAccess is equally doing great in promoting persons with disability' access to human space exploration.
There are high hopes that the first wheelchair user will travel to space soon. We are now looking forward to seeing John McFall, a person with physical disability, become the first astronaut in the world to be assigned to a long-duration space mission.
In 2022, the European Space Agency (ESA) selected John for a study on the suitability of astronauts with physical disabilities in space exploration. The study aimed to demonstrate that a person with physical disability can travel to space.
To assess whether persons with physical disabilities can safely fly to space for a long period, McFall, a right leg amputee and a qualified doctor, was selected by ESA. After all the safety procedures one would undertake while in space travel and other related topics were assessed, John McFall was announced as a “certified astronaut who can fly on a long-duration mission on the International Space Station.”
According to Space News, McFall is likely to be assigned the first private astronaut mission if the discussions going on between the U.K. The Space Agency and Axiom turn positive.
How XSTO Mobility Wheelchair Innovations Are Enhancing Accessibility
As spacecrafts are technologically advancing to promote access to space and make it safe for disabled persons to travel to space, XSTO Mobility is equally advancing mobility technology to enhance accessibility. Access to different terrains, wheelchair path routes in designated areas, and interior spaces is only possible with an adaptive wheelchair.
Persons with disabilities need to be assured of access to most areas, places, and facilities independently. For this reason, XSTO Mobility has developed an advanced smart wheelchair, XSTO M4, that can be folded, seat height adjusted, reclined, self-balanced, and change motion mode to match the needed motion power.
Conclusion
As Michi prepared to cross the atmosphere, and John's artificial leg was about to step through the International Space Station's hatch, we never saw the label of “disability.” What we witnessed was the courage to confront destiny: the tenacity to pursue weightlessness after spinal cord injury, the perseverance to reach for the stars after amputation, and the quiet resolve to prove doubters wrong with every adjustment of equipment from a wheelchair and every adaptation to weightlessness during parabolic flight.
Their stories are not “ Special Cases” — they are beacons lighting the way for those facing adversity. Physical constraints may define boundaries, but courage expands the frontiers of the cosmos. When these wheelchair-bound light-seekers pierce the heavens, they illuminate not only the darkness of space but also dispel the fog of “I can’t” from countless hearts. It turns out that so-called “barriers” can never extinguish a burning dream. It turns out that every life can reach its own “starry sea” through courage.