Joe Fedro ’18
It seems even the American media is enthralled by the idea of manned mission to Mars. The release of the movie, “The Martian” is a prime example.
Scott Kelly is currently in outer space on the International Space Station. He has been for about 363 days now. Kelly will be back on the ground come March 1st. Since he launched on March 27, 2015, Scott and his twin Mark have been subjects in numerous experiments comparing the impacts of space travel on the human genome. Moreover, researchers will look for the physical, mental, medical, and physiological impacts of space travel. They will look to measure a difference in the bone density, vision, microbiome, blood, heart, and cells of the Kelly brothers. Psychologically, researchers want to compare Scott and Mark’s mood, stress, and cognitive functions.
All of this comes at the dawn of a new chapter of American space travel. NASA’s ultimate goal with this year long space mission is to determine whether a manned mission to Mars is possible. It seems even the American media is enthralled by the idea of manned mission to Mars. The release of the movie, “The Martian” is a prime example.
Kelly is the first American to spend a year in space, but he is by no means the first man to do so. Four Russians have already spent a year in space, the most recent in 1999. For these astronauts, returning to a ‘normal life’ was difficult. Physical discomfort was ever present for multiple weeks. Symptoms included backaches, headaches, bone loss, lousy sleep, loss of balance, nausea, radiation exposure; the list goes on and on. Yet, Kelly is no amateur when it comes to spending time in space. Prior to this trip, he had already logged in around 150 days in space. He spoke of his physical pain when returning to earth. He said, “You feel bad for a month, and I’ve never felt completely normal.” Due to his experience, researchers will compare Kelly’s year long mission to his briefer ones to see if ‘harm’ occurs mainly in the early part of space missions or as a cumulative process.
Overall, Kelly’s mission is to determine the probability of a future manned mission to Mars. A journey to Mars and back to Earth would take roughly two and a half years. Although the US has not put a man into outer space for half of that time, Kelly’s mission is leading the way into a world of interplanetary travel.