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NASA astronaut\u00a0Scott Kelly<\/a>\u00a0and Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko and Gennady Padalka are heading to the International Space Station this Friday\u00a0on a Soyuz spacecraft:\u00a0One-Year Crew Set for Launch to Space Station; NASA TV to Air Live Coverage –\u00a0NASA<\/a><\/p>\n While all previous astronaut tours on the station have been limited to less than six months, Kelly and Kornienko\u00a0will spend a year aboard the space station. The goal\u00a0of the \u00a0One Year Crew<\/a>\u00a0program is to study the effects on the human body that could occur on a long space trip in microgravity to Mars and to find ways to ameliorate or prevent negative effects.<\/p>\n One particularly interest aspect of this experiment will be the comparison of Scott with his twin brother and former astronaut\u00a0Mark Kelly<\/a>, who will remain on the ground:\u00a0NASA Launches New Research, Seeks the Subtle in Parallel Ways\u00a0–\u00a0NASA<\/a><\/p>\n —<\/p>\n Last year Chris Jones wrote an extensive preview of the mission in an Esquire Magazine article called\u00a0Away<\/a>. Jones will post periodic updates on the mission in the coming year. Here is his first posting:\u00a0Away: Five Days To Launch<\/a><\/p>\n —<\/p>\n Here’s a NASA video about the twins study:<\/p>\n