U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly will return to Earth this week after spending a year on the International Space Station.
For most of us earthlings, 340 days in space is pretty hard to imagine. It entails:
- 143,846,525 miles of space travel
- 5,440 orbits
- 10,260 sunrises and sunsets
- 640 hours on a treadmill to stay in shape
- 20 medical tests
The sunsets seem to be a favorite for Kelly, 52, who has become known for posting beautiful photos of them from orbit.
Of all the sunrises I've seen on my #YearInSpace, this was one of the best! One of the last too. Headed home soon. pic.twitter.com/AD4YEiN5kR
— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) February 27, 2016
Kelly also posted 713 photos to Instagram during his year in space, according to the New York Times.
This is Kelly's fourth mission, bringing his lifetime total to 520 days in space. NASA hopes the medical tests conducted on Scott Kelly and his twin brother, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, over the course of the mission will help them understand the effect of space travel on the body.
Scott Kelly's journey home started Monday when he handed over command to fellow astronaut Tim Kopra.
On his last day onboard, @StationCDRKelly hands over command of the @Space_Station to @astro_tim. https://t.co/Atodu2N2F0
— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) February 29, 2016
Kelly is expected to land in Kazakhstan tonight and return to Houston Wednesday.
MORE | Astronaut Scott Kelly Could 'Go Another Year If I Had to' in Space
