Soyuz Crew Arrives Back on Earth

Mar 02, 2016, 10:01

NASAScott Kelly.NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly finally comes back to Earth tonight after spending just shy of a year in space.

One of his biggest hopes for the Year in Space mission's legacy is that it helps NASA on its quest to take astronauts farther away from Earth on longer space flights - a necessity for traveling to Mars in the future. Kelly and Kornienko specifically participated in a number of studies to inform NASA's Journey to Mars, including research into how the human body adjusts to weightlessness, isolation, radiation and the stress of long-duration spaceflight. All photos above are courtesy of NASA.

In a previous interview with CNN, Kelly said Earth's atmosphere "looks very, very fragile" from the space station.

Piloting the Soyuz capsule home for Kelly, 52, and Kornienko, 55, was the much fresher and decade younger cosmonaut Sergey Volkov, whose space station stint lasted the typical six months.

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The space veteran said he has witnessed some of the most wonderful scenes of Earth during his mission, like spotting the northern lights, passing over the Bahamas and watching huge storms like Hurricane Patricia.

On March 1, his 340th day aboard the International Space Station (ISS), he'll board the Soyuz spacecraft and cruise back down to the ground.

The International Space Station, a joint project of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada, followed Mir and has been permanently staffed by rotating crews since 2000.

"Some of us are, the guys in the black shirts here, are going home tomorrow which is bittersweet when you leave this incredible place", said Kelly.

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The choice of the pioneering Kelly turned out to be a bonanza.

Kelly and Kornienko were due to split up later Wednesday.

Soon Kelly will be headed back to Houston, Texas, where he will continue to undergo testing for the One-Year Mission. That's where he'll be reunited with his two daughters, ages 21 and 12; his girlfriend, a NASA public affairs representative at Johnson Space Center; and his brother.

This is Kelly's fourth mission, bringing his lifetime total to 520 days in space.

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The U.S. senator from New Jersey - who sits on Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which overseas NASA - introduced a resolution in the Senate to honor Kelly for his yearlong space expedition, which Booker described a "massive achievement for mankind".