Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko are the first astronauts ever chosen to spend an entire year in space

Mar 23, 2015 08:10 GMT  ·  By

This coming Friday, March 27, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko and Gennady Padalka will leave Earth and head for the International Space Station to become part of the Expedition 43 crew.

The three daredevils will ride to the orbital laboratory in a Soyuz spacecraft scheduled to launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at precisely 3:42 p.m. EDT.

The astronauts will to dock to the International Space Station at 9:36 p.m. EDT. A couple of hours later, they will join the other crew members aboard it, NASA's Terry Virts, Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos, and ESA's Samantha Cristoforetti.

Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko will spend a full year in space

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko will live and work aboard the International Space Station for a full year. Fellow crew member Gennady Padalka, on the other hand, will return to Earth after six months.

The reason NASA and Roscosmos agreed to let Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko spend this much time in space is that these daredevils' prolonged stay aboard the orbital laboratory is bound to shed new light on how low-gravity environments affect the human body.

Scientists say that, in low-gravity environments, the bones and the muscles in the human body are forever in a resting state. Even the heart takes a break from working hard to overcome gravity and pump blood upwards in the body.

Being in resting state day in, day out might sound like a whole lot of fun and a well-deserved vacation, but it really isn't. This is because, in the long run, getting no exercise whatsoever leads to loss of muscle, bone, and cardiovascular functions.

Scott Kelly's and Mikhail Kornienko's one-year stay in space should translates into a better understanding of how low-gravity environments affect the human body. This is the kind of information we need if we are to one day send crews to other planets.

While aboard the International Space Station, the NASA astronaut's and the Russian cosmonaut's physical performances will be closely documented, as will be their metabolism. Any changes in their behavior will not go unrecorded either.

Scott Kelly's twin is also involved in this adventure, sort of

Although he will remain here on Earth, astronaut Scot Kelly's twin brother, Mark Kelly, will also be involved in this little research project cooked up by NASA and fellow International Space Station guardians. Thus, he'll act as a control.

The idea is that, since Scot Kelly and Mark Kelly are genetically identical, whatever physical and physiological changes are displayed only by the former during the one-year space mission are most likely the result of living in a low-gravity environment.

“Data and samples will be collected throughout the year from a series of studies involving Scott and his twin brother, former NASA astronaut Mark Kelly. The studies will compare data from the genetically-identical Kelly brothers to identify any subtle changes caused by spaceflight,” NASA explains.

From left to right: NASA's Scott Kelly and Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos
From left to right: NASA's Scott Kelly and Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos

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The International Space Station will soon welcome new crew members
From left to right: NASA's Scott Kelly and Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos
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