Kelly is scheduled to return to Earth from the International Space Station late Tuesday, with a planned landing in Kazakhstan at about 11:45 p.m. He will have spent a total of 342 days in space, a record for an American.
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NASA announced that Kelly will hand over command of the International Space Station to fellow NASA astronaut Tim Kopra. In a first-of-its-kind study, Scott’s twin brother, former astronaut Mark Kelly, remained on Earth to serve as a human control for the experiment.
The science driving the one-year mission, critical to informing the agency’s Journey to Mars, began a year before Kelly or Kornienko floated into the space station.
While we await Scott Kelly’s return to Earth next week, check out this awesome video that presents his year in space in less than 3 minutes.
“I could go another 100 days”, Kelly said during a news conference last week, the Washington Post reports.
NASA considers it crucial prep work for future Mars explorers who will have to spend much longer in space and won’t have the help of a welcoming committee. “I have to say it’s an honor to assume command of ISS”.
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The studies will help doctors and scientist to see how microgravity, increased radiation, and other space problems may have affected Kelly’s health over the course of the year comparing him to his twin brother.
