Because our bodies have been adapted to life on Earth, they are not built for weightlessness — which is exactly why NASA plans to use Scott Kelly, who has just returned from his nearly one yearstay aboard the International Space Station to study the long-term effects of spaceflight on the human body.
Scott’s identical twin brother Mark Kelly has spent the past year on Earth, so NASA will compare Mark’s changes to those that Scott experienced.
According to this Business Insider article, NASA’s ultimate goal is to use the lessons learned from Scott Kelly’s Year in Space Mission to send astronauts to Mars — and soon too. That journey will take about two and a half years for the round trip, so understanding spaceflight’s effects on the human body will be even more important.
Here are eight biological oddities that happen to your body if you are in space for a year.
And there you have it. All the more reason to be thankful for life on earth! And if you have ambitions of going to Space or living on Mars, at least, now you are better informed.
Source: Business Insider