A Month in Space Makes You 2.5 cm Taller

An astronaut watches a drink float inside the space station. Strange things happen to the body up here too.

On Earth, gravity presses on your spine all day. You are a bit taller after a night lying down because that pressure eases for a while.

In space this pressure is gone altogether. After about a month, height goes up by roughly 2.5 cm.

If I went to space I could be a basketball player

An astronaut floating aboard the station. With nothing to hold up, the bones do less work too.

The bones weaken in return. On the Russian Mir station, an average loss of 1 to 2 percent a month was recorded.

Even if you cry, the tears don't run down. They stick together and ball up.

So in space you can cry and your face stays dry

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