Astronaut Michael Barratt moves the Combined Operational Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill aboard the International Space Station in this image from NASA TV September 1, 2009.
Russian engineers are developing a new exercise machine for astronauts to keep fit on the International Space Station (ISS), an official said Thursday.
The astronauts will be able to perform about eight sets of physical exercise on the new machine to primarily train the muscles that suffer in zero gravity, said Yelena Fomina, head of the Laboratory for the Prevention of Hypo-Gravitational Disturbances under the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The key element of the Russian gym system currently on the ISS is a treadmill, and Russian astronauts dedicate two and a half hours each day to physical training, she was quoted by TASS news agency as saying.
According to her, the Russian crew also use the stationary bike and the weightlifting device of the U.S. partners, while the Russian exercise machine is being developed.
Fomina did not disclose when the new machine will be completed and delivered to the ISS.
