ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen outside the Air Force Research Laboratory's centrifuge at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, USA.

Before launching to the International Space Station for his Huginn mission later this month, Andreas felt the g-forces that await him on his ride into low Earth orbit.

In preparation for their space missions, astronauts undergo centrifuge training sessions to train their bodies to withstand the high levels of acceleration, or g-forces, experienced during ascent and return to Earth.

A centrifuge is a machine that uses force to move its contents, or in this case an astronaut, away from a centre or axis. Centrifuge training not only helps to prepare the astronauts for g loads aboard a space vehicle, but also to work and learn how to operate under them.

The goal of Andreas's training was to experience the acceleration profile during ascent and reentry of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endurance that will take Andreas to the International Space Station and back. The acceleration profile of the centrifuge is based on acceleration data from the SpaceX vehicle.

A training session lasts around 45 minutes and begins with an ascent and reentry profile, followed by an abort profile. This way, the astronauts know exactly what to expect during these phases.

Andreas was selected to launch on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 alongside commander NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, mission specialist and JAXA astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and mission specialist and Roscosmos astronaut Konstantin Borisov.

Andreas will serve as spacecraft pilot for the mission, the first non-US astronaut assigned in this capacity. He will also become the Space Station commander during Expedition 70, the sixth European astronaut to fulfil this role.

Huginn will see Andreas stay aboard the International Space Station for six months, his first long-duration mission after ’iriss’, his 10-day, first mission in September 2015. Andreas is Denmark’s first astronaut and has logged 9 days, 20 hours, and 9 minutes in space so far.

Learn more about Andreas and his Huginn mission.