The biological toll of staying in orbit for an entire year
In short: Humanity is preparing to test the limits of our biology in microgravity. By sending two people into a year-long stay on the International Space Station, NASA aims to decode how our bodies adapt—or fail to adapt—to the harsh vacuum of space.
In 2015, NASA selected astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko for a landmark 12-month mission aboard the International Space Station. Launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan via a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, the pair will serve as human subjects in the world's only microgravity laboratory. This long-duration stay is designed to provide critical data on how the human body reacts and adapts to spaceflight over an extended period. The mission is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2015. This specific flight path utilizes a Russian Soyuz spacecraft for transport.
The primary goal of this mission is twofold: assessing crew performance and identifying health risks. Because space travel poses unique physiological challenges, scientists need high-resolution data to develop methods for reducing these risks. By monitoring Kelly and Kornienko for a full year, researchers can observe the cumulative effects of microgravity on human systems, which are often different from the short-term changes seen in shorter missions.
While the mission focuses on human endurance, the International Space Station remains a hub for broader scientific innovation. It enables research that is physically impossible to conduct on Earth, benefiting humanity by pushing the boundaries of science and technology. Understanding these biological limits is essential for future deep-space exploration, where long-term survival depends on our ability to mitigate the effects of an alien environment. This station orbits at an inclination of 51.6 degrees relative to the equator. It travels at speeds reaching 17,500 mph, which is significantly faster than commercial aircraft.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Two Picked For Year-Long Stay On ISS on This Week @ NASA
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