AFP

The first astronaut — or astronauts — with a physical disability could be announced as soon as Wednesday, according to the European Space Agency.

People with physical disabilities have previously been excluded from one of the most exclusive and demanding jobs on Earth — and beyond — due to strict selection requirements.

Guillaume Weerts, the ESA’s head of space medicine, told AFP that the agency’s “parastronaut project” required “a complete change in philosophy” about the concept of medical aptitude, which originally came from the military and the selection of fighter pilots.

After carrying out a feasibility study, the ESA said potential candidates could include people who have deficiencies in their lower limbs, whether from amputation or congenital defects.

Shorter people of up to 1.3 metres (4.3 feet) tall or those with different leg lengths were also eligible to apply.

The educational and psychological requirements for the candidates remained the same as for any other astronaut. Applications closed in June 2021.

The ESA is expected to name between four to six new European astronauts — without disabilities — during its ministerial council in Paris on Wednesday.

While Weerts said the parastronaut project runs somewhat separately, “there is a real possibility that as part of the announcement one or more people with disabilities” will also be presented.

– ‘Disability is not a limitation’ – 

In the extremely precise world of space travel, even small alterations can become extremely complicated — and expensive.

For example, the existing systems are designed for people of a certain height, Weerts said.

“What does that mean for someone who is a shorter size? How can we make sure that person can just reach the buttons?”

The ESA plans to work with those who are selected to find the best way to overcome such potential challenges.

As a member of the selection panel, Weerts could not reveal details about particular candidates.

But he said “a really great group of people” had applied and worked their way through the selection process.

“We have encountered absolutely marvellous individuals,” he said.

The process was an excellent “demonstration that disability is not a limitation”, he added.

“It’s really something that we all believe in,” he said, adding that there was a high level of commitment to the project from ESA’s partners.

So when could the first astronauts with a disability blast off?

“Space is a not a business for people who are in a hurry,” Weerts said.

The timeline is difficult to predict because “it really depends on what we encounter”, he said, adding that plenty more work would be carried out once the ESA has selected its candidates.

But he did say that an astronaut with a disability could launch into space “potentially in the next 10 years”.

– ‘Incredibly exciting’ – 

Kamran Mallick, the chief executive of the charity Disability Rights UK, said the project was “incredibly exciting”.

“Disabled people are excluded (from) large aspects of everything that we do in the world,” he told AFP.

“If we are truly to explore the universe, we have to accept that we can’t just have it solely for a particular group of individuals.”

Mallick praised the ESA’s plan to work with the astronauts to figure exactly what they need. 

“I’m a wheelchair user, and it is far better that people ask me what works for me, what I would need, rather than making assumptions of what someone can or cannot do,” he said.

Mallick said that while watching a space shuttle launch as a teenager, he dreamt of becoming an astronaut.

“Of course, I was quickly told that was not going to happen. Don’t aspire to be an astronaut,” he said.

“I wish I’d pursued it now.”

The first astronaut — or astronauts — with a physical disability could be announced as soon as Wednesday, according to the European Space Agency.

People with physical disabilities have previously been excluded from one of the most exclusive and demanding jobs on Earth — and beyond — due to strict selection requirements.

Guillaume Weerts, the ESA’s head of space medicine, told AFP that the agency’s “parastronaut project” required “a complete change in philosophy” about the concept of medical aptitude, which originally came from the military and the selection of fighter pilots.

After carrying out a feasibility study, the ESA said potential candidates could include people who have deficiencies in their lower limbs, whether from amputation or congenital defects.

Shorter people of up to 1.3 metres (4.3 feet) tall or those with different leg lengths were also eligible to apply.

The educational and psychological requirements for the candidates remained the same as for any other astronaut. Applications closed in June 2021.

The ESA is expected to name between four to six new European astronauts — without disabilities — during its ministerial council in Paris on Wednesday.

While Weerts said the parastronaut project runs somewhat separately, “there is a real possibility that as part of the announcement one or more people with disabilities” will also be presented.

– ‘Disability is not a limitation’ – 

In the extremely precise world of space travel, even small alterations can become extremely complicated — and expensive.

For example, the existing systems are designed for people of a certain height, Weerts said.

“What does that mean for someone who is a shorter size? How can we make sure that person can just reach the buttons?”

The ESA plans to work with those who are selected to find the best way to overcome such potential challenges.

As a member of the selection panel, Weerts could not reveal details about particular candidates.

But he said “a really great group of people” had applied and worked their way through the selection process.

“We have encountered absolutely marvellous individuals,” he said.

The process was an excellent “demonstration that disability is not a limitation”, he added.

“It’s really something that we all believe in,” he said, adding that there was a high level of commitment to the project from ESA’s partners.

So when could the first astronauts with a disability blast off?

“Space is a not a business for people who are in a hurry,” Weerts said.

The timeline is difficult to predict because “it really depends on what we encounter”, he said, adding that plenty more work would be carried out once the ESA has selected its candidates.

But he did say that an astronaut with a disability could launch into space “potentially in the next 10 years”.

– ‘Incredibly exciting’ – 

Kamran Mallick, the chief executive of the charity Disability Rights UK, said the project was “incredibly exciting”.

“Disabled people are excluded (from) large aspects of everything that we do in the world,” he told AFP.

“If we are truly to explore the universe, we have to accept that we can’t just have it solely for a particular group of individuals.”

Mallick praised the ESA’s plan to work with the astronauts to figure exactly what they need. 

“I’m a wheelchair user, and it is far better that people ask me what works for me, what I would need, rather than making assumptions of what someone can or cannot do,” he said.

Mallick said that while watching a space shuttle launch as a teenager, he dreamt of becoming an astronaut.

“Of course, I was quickly told that was not going to happen. Don’t aspire to be an astronaut,” he said.

“I wish I’d pursued it now.”

A 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Solomon Islands on Tuesday, swaying buildings, hurling items off shelves and briefly knocking out power in parts of the capital Honiara.

There were no reports of serious injuries or major structural damage.

“This was a big one,” Joy Nisha, a receptionist with the Heritage Park Hotel in the capital told AFP.

“Some of the things in the hotel fell. Everyone seems OK, but panicky.”

At one recently built mall, chunks of cladding were shaken loose, crushing the bonnet of a car and breaking the windshield.

The roof of an annexe at the Australian High Commission also collapsed, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told parliament in Canberra, stating “there are no known injuries”.

An AFP reporter in Honiara said the shaking lasted for around 20 seconds.

Power was immediately knocked out in some areas of the capital and phone lines were also down.

Across the city, people fled their homes and workplaces for higher ground, fearing a tsunami.

“I was really scared because this is the first time I felt this kind of earthquake,” said a manager at the Pacific Casino Hotel, who asked not to be named.

“The building was really violently shaking,” she said. “It was really strong, it made you move side to side.”

Dozens of staff and guests fled the building to the relative safety of the car park, hoping not to be hit by debris on the way out.

The nation’s attorney general, John Muria, posted images on social media of office files that had spilled from several large metal filing cabinets. 

– Aftershocks –

The quake struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometres, just off the southwest coast of Guadalcanal island.

A tsunami warning had been issued for an area of the Solomons coast within 300 kilometres (185 miles) of the epicentre, but the UN-backed Pacific warning centre later said the threat had “largely” passed.

As nightfall approached, power was starting to return to Honiara, but local authorities urged caution.

“We expect aftershocks so people should stay alert around buildings and tall structures because of the size of the earthquake,” said David Hiba Hiriasia, director of the Solomon Islands Meteorological Service.

Staff at one hospital were readying to evacuate patients if needed.

According to UN data, about 20,000 people live within 50 kilometres of the epicentre.

The Solomons — a sprawling archipelago in the South Pacific — is home to about 800,000 people.

The quake hit exactly a year after anti-government riots that killed at least three people and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage. 

A global wildlife summit in Panama will decide whether to take measures to protect the translucent glass frog and 12 types of freshwater turtles in its final week, which kicked off Monday.

Conservation experts and delegates from more than 180 nations began the week with a decision to maintain a ban on the trade of white rhinoceros horn, despite a request from Eswatini that was backed by Japan and several other African countries.

The tiny nation, formerly known as Swaziland, had argued the money from the sale of rhino horn would aid in conserving the threatened species.

Delegates also authorized the export of Brazil’s broad-snouted caiman and the saltwater crocodile from the Philippines for animals raised in captivity, but a ban on cross-border trade in Siamese crocodiles raised by Thai farmers was left intact.

The meeting in Panama City began on November 14 to discuss 52 proposals to modify protection levels set by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The fate of several unique amphibians will be up for debate before the meeting wraps up on Friday.

“Freshwater turtles are among the main groups that are trafficked in the countries, and there is high pressure for international trade,” said Yovana Murillo, who heads a program against wildlife trafficking in the Andes, Amazon and Orinoco region for the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Peru want to list two species of matamata turtles, which live in the Amazon and Orinoco basins, on CITES Appendix II, which requires the tracking and regulation of trade.

Doris Rodriguez of Peru’s forestry service told AFP that the striking matamata turtles, with their beetle-like appearance, have become sought-after pets and “face many threats.”

These include habitat destruction, pollution, illegal trade, and being hunted for their meat and eggs.

– Glass frog –

Delegates will also debate regulating the trade of the nocturnal glass frog, found in several rainforests in Central and South America.

The amphibian is an increasingly popular pet. Some are a lime green color, while others have translucent bellies and chests. 

“They are being collected for their beauty. They are being trafficked and some are in critical danger,” said Rodriguez.

CITES, in force since 1975, regulates trade in some 36,000 species of plants and animals and provides mechanisms to help crack down on illegal trade. It sanctions countries that break the rules.

The meeting of the parties to the convention takes place every two or three years.

On Friday, delegates rejected a request by Zimbabwe to allow the ivory trade to resume in some southern African countries, a decision lauded by conservation NGOs. 

Another hot issue up for debate is the possible addition of protections for two major shark families, which could upend Hong Kong’s controversial shark fin trade.

– Beleaguered porpoise –

The conference has seen fierce debate over the vaquita, a species of porpoise that lives in Mexico’s Gulf of California and is at risk of extinction.

On the eve of the summit, CITES issued an ultimatum to Mexico, to show progress in protecting the world’s most endangered marine animal by February 2023, or face sanctions against its fish exports.

Washington has argued that its neighbor is not doing enough to protect the vaquita, while Mexico countered it had boosted naval surveillance in the Gulf.

Good news also emerged from the summit: the Aleutian cackling goose was moved from the list of most threatened species to those no longer threatened with extinction, after its numbers increased.

“This is a positive story about the recovery of a species,” highlighted the president of the committee which approved the move, Britain’s Vincent Fleming.