Into the Unknown: Commanders Kelly and Kornienko Begin Seventh Month of Space Travel | NASA

[Fred Sanders]

https://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/news/releases/2015/halftime-in-space-space-station-crew-and-ground-controllers-mark-mid-point-of-one-year.html

"Almost everything we know about living in space ends at six months. Now that I am at the midpoint of my mission, heading into the second half of one year in space aboard the International Space Station, I am looking forward to exploring the science of this uncharted territory and stepping into the unknown.

My Russian colleague Mikhail Kornienko and I are living in space for one year to push the edge of our scientific understanding. To add in another dynamic, researchers are conducting “twin studies” to compare the subtle effects and changes in spaceflight as compared to Earth by studying my twin brother and I, two individuals who have almost identical genetics, but are in different environments for one year. We hope that the knowledge gained on this mission will benefit the Earth and that the data collected will help send humans to new destinations, supporting the next generation of space explorers."

[ChisolmTrailDem]

1. Thanks for the post. I've been watching some of the appearances and commentary by

Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti and NASA astronaut Terry Virts for the past couple of weeks or so on NASA-TV and elsewhere, who recently returned to Earth after a 200-day stay in space.

I'll be interested to see the effects and follow Commander Scott Kelly after his year-long stint aboard the space station.

[shireen]

2. They're using his identical twin on Earth, Mark Kelly as a baseline

Mark is married to Gabby Giffords.

NASA regularly runs medical checks on the two brothers to track development in space and Earth. It's such an awesome scientific opportunity, to be able to work with identical twins, both astronauts, one in space and one on Earth.

[awoke_in_2003]

3. I see the Omega Speedmaster Pro

is no longer the official watch of NASA.