Just days after ending his after his epic 340-day stint on the International Space Station NASA astronaut Scott Kelly says that he could have stayed in space longer. Scott noted that he grew an inch and a half in orbit, thanks to the stretching of the spinal column in weightlessness, but “gravity pushes you back down to size”, he said, and now they are the same height again. “Whether it’s science, or going to a certain destination”. The experiment required medical equipment from the American side of the space station to be moved to the Russian section. When the guys were walking on the moon, they were trying to develop more advanced computers and technology. “But it feels great, it’s great to be back in Texas on US soil”. It’s like a burning feeling wherever I sit or lie or walk.
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Data collection began before launch, continued throughout the flight aboard the space station and will go on for months to come as researchers measure how Kelly and Kornienko re-adapt to gravity. Kelly set a USA record with his 340-day mission to the International Space Station. Mark Kelly, a retired astronaut, spent 54 days in space over the course of four missions.
Many of their blood, urine and saliva samples are still up on the space station, frozen.
“I thought it would probably be a little different, but it’s more than just a little different”, said Kelly.
The astronaut was also asked whether he has noticed any differences between him and his brother. “I think it’s because he plays too much golf”.
So for now, we only have anecdotal feedback on Kelly’s record-breaking jaunt into space: During the Friday press briefing, Kelly and his brother both mentioned his eye trouble – a common problem for astronauts. “That was something that was kind of unexpected”, Kelly said.
Since there is no gravity in space, astronauts may suffer from weak muscles.
Kelly answered questions in the news conference about the first food he ate upon return-a banana-and the one place in the world he wants to visit now that he’s seen it from a new perspective-a remote collection of lakes north of the Himalayas. “We make do with not having a shower on board [the space station] – I definitely feel like I would like jump in a pool”.
“Going to Mars, if it takes 2½ years, yeah, that’s doable”, the astronaut said.
He reiterated this message Friday.
Immediately after landing, the team underwent field tests that checked the men for weakening in the body, a normal side effect of being in space for a prolonged period of time.
Scientists are hoping for more one-year subjects as NASA gears up for human expeditions to Mars in the 2030s. Radiation also poses a major challenge for Mars missions, along the durability of astronauts’ bodies and minds.
“What a ride he took us on!” fellow astronaut Reid Wiseman said in a tweet from Houston.
“I think being able to see the Earth from space is pretty intimidating because you realize how small we are in terms of the rest of the galaxy”. The National Space Biomedical Research Institute and other NASA researchers will analyze the changes that may have occurred in Kelly’s bones, muscles, face, legs, and his heart. “You have to make it as flawless as you can, including the environment, air temperature, interfacing with the system, communication, entertainment and noise abatement because you’re sleeping, living, exercising and eating right next to each other”.
“We have so many talented people in our office, there’s no reason to fly me again”, he said, adding that he’ll never completely retire from space because of the opportunities in the private sector.
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Sign me up for the next trip to the station, because space is by far the best plastic surgeon.
