[Energy expenditures of the "Soiuz-9" space crew during an 18-day flight]

The paper presents a method for studying metabolism on the basis of the changes in the partial pressure of CO2 in the space cabin which takes into account the performance of absorbers--superoxides of alkali metals. With the aid of this method the oxygen consumption by the crew was measured during the flight. The average energy expenditure by crew members was 2300 kCal per day with variations from 2020 to 3050 kCal per day and the average oxygen consumption was 22.0 nl per hour with variations from 17.6 to 26.6 nl per hour. The level of oxygen consumption by the crew showed a certain periodicity which was attributed to the energy expenditures during physical exercises. The oxygen consumption during the weightlessness adaptation (during the first 6 to 7 days) was reduced to 20 nl per hour on the average. No significant changes in the basal metabolism were found in the crew members throughout the flight.