Space Travel Can Be a Dangerous Adventure

The effects of weightlessness on the human body were evident today at a welcome home event for the crew of Space Shuttle Atlantis.

Amid the festivities at Ellington Field, Houston, astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshn-Piper fainted twice. Both times she appeared confused just before her legs began to buckle. NASA officials and fellow crew members quickly braced her fall and helped her to the ground.

Despite being a little red-faced, Stefanyshn-Piper remained in good spirits.

"Boy, if that's not a little embarrassing," she said, according to the Associate Press.

Stefanyshn-Piper is among the six member Atlantis crew that returned Thursday after a 12-day long stay in space to add a solar array to the International Space Station.

Experts say Stefanyshn-Piper's fainting spell is not unusual....
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