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10 great moments from Scott Kelly’s year in space

NASA

NASA

Astronaut Scott Kelly has relinquished command of the International Space Station (ISS) and returned to Earth safely on Wednesday.

Take a look back at some of the most memorable moments from the former commander’s time in space:

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US astronaut Scott Kelly returns to Earth

1. He told Reddit how hard it was to sleep in space

In January, Scott Kelly took part in one of online forum Reddit’s famous AMAs (Ask Me Anything).

Sleeping is harder here in space than on a bed because the sleep position here is the same position throughout the day. You don’t ever get that sense of gratifying relaxation here that you do on Earth after a long day at work. Yes, there are humming noises on station that affect my sleep, so I wear ear plugs.

He also said that he tucked his arms inside his sleeping bag so they do not float around.

And then there is what happens when you do finally get to sleep:

My dreams are sometimes space dreams and sometimes Earth dreams. And they are crazy.

2. He watched a movie about people dying in space, in space

In case you don’t remember, Gravity is the one where the space shuttle is destroyed by debris, George Clooney sacrifices himself, and Sandra Bullock barely makes it back to Earth. After watching that, a movie about a man who is left for dead on Mars but survives through hard work and science might have been more uplifting.

3. He unveiled the first ever flower grown in space (and ate the first produce)

Scott Kelly’s time as commander saw two milestones in space botany: these flowers, and the first plants eaten in space (red romaine lettuce). Zinnias were selected because they are difficult to grow, and therefore are an excellent study for engineers hoping to one day grow tomatoes en route to Mars.

4. He floated around the ISS in a gorilla suit

His twin brother, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, managed to convince NASA to send the suit into orbit as part of a care package, so of course the only thing to do was dress up and chase British astronaut Tim Peake.

5. He took a walk in space

During his Reddit AMA, he said that space suits feel the same in an atmosphere as they do in space because they are pressurised, and that spacewalks require so much concentration he doesn’t think of how high he is while he’s falling around the Earth.

6. He captured the enormity of Hurricane Patricia

Hurricane Patricia hammered Mexico and south-eastern Texas, and no wonder: It was the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere, and on par with Typhoon Haiyan, which killed thousands in the Philippines in 2013.

7. He challenged us to a bit of space geography trivia

We asked you to help us identify some of Commander Kelly’s photos of Australia.

8. He played ping pong with water


The microgravity environment on the ISS allows scientists and engineers to study physical and biological sciences in a way that would not be possible on Earth.

It also allows an astronaut armed with a pair of hydrophobic (water-repelling) paddles to bounce a ball of water back and forth without getting wet.

9. He celebrated New Horizons reaching Pluto


In July 2015, the New Horizons spacecraft reached Pluto after a nine-year, 4.8-billion kilometre journey.

Scott Kelly sent his congratulations from orbit, with the help of a New Horizons model and a truly unique bumper sticker.

10. He pretended he was in Star Wars, chasing a TIE fighter

We’ve all dreamed of that, haven’t we?

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