This dusk , NASA ’s Scott Kellybroke the recordfor longsighted consecutive time spend in blank by a U.S. cosmonaut . He made history again in the first place this workweek when he became the first - ever person to conduct aReddit AMA from space .
Kelly recently passed the 300 - 24-hour interval scar of his unprecedentedOne - Year Mission , so he ’s the pure mortal to ask about all the absorbing — and sometimes nasty — contingent that arrive with life-time in orbit . “ A twelvemonth is a long time to live without the human striking of bed ones , fresh air , and soberness , to name a few , ” aver Kelly in hisintroduction . “ While science is at the core of this groundbreaking spacefaring , it also has been a test of human endurance . ” Here are nine of Kelly ’s most out - of - this - world Book of Revelation .
1. HIS ARMS ARE ALWAYS FOLDED FOR A REASON.
If you ’ve ascertain any of thevideosScott Kelly has made aboard the International Space Station , you may have note he has a habit of fold his munition . No matter how nerveless he look while doing it , Kelly take a firm stand that the pose is less about aesthetic and more about practicality . " Your arms do n’t hang by your side in space like they do on Earth because there is no gravity , ” he told Redditors . “ It feels ill at ease to have them blow in front of me . It is just more comfortable to have them folded . I do n’t even have them float in my rest , I put them in my slumber bag . ”
2. SPACE DOES WEIRD THINGS TO YOUR FEET.
When demand to apportion an unusual part of life sentence in space that most people do n’t think about , Kelly in spades did not disappoint . “ The callus on your feet in space will finally fall off . So , the bottoms of your feet become very flabby like newborn baby feet , ” he sound out . “ But the top of my foot develop rough gator pelt because I utilise the top of my feet to get around here [ in the ] distance post when using foot rails . ”
3. SLEEPING IN ZERO GRAVITY IS NO PICNIC.
According to Kelly , zero - g condition do n’t make for a relaxing night ’s rest . “ quiescence is harder here in space than on a bed because the sleep position here is the same position throughout the solar day , ” he said . “ You do n’t ever get that mother wit of gratifying relaxation here that you do on Earth after a long day at work . ” And it in all likelihood does n’t help that Kelly was a poor sleeper long before he ever leave the major planet . “ I do n’t think I have ever slept eight minute straight in the last 20 years . I wind up awake up a couple of times . My dream are sometimes place dream and sometimes Earth dreams . And they are crazy . ”
4. A TON OF WORK GOES INTO EACH MISSION.
When asked about the biggest misconception people have about space travel , Kelly cite the world ’s underrating of the amount of body of work that ’s need for each commission . “ I think a lot of the great unwashed think that , because we give the coming into court that this is well-heeled , that it is easy , ” he order . “ I do n’t think the great unwashed have an appreciation for the work that it take to deplumate these missions off , like humans living on the place post unceasingly for 15 years . It [ take ] a huge army of hard - work hoi polloi to make it happen . ”
5. HIS FAVORITE DAVID BOWIE SONG ISN’T “SPACE ODDITY.”
Though you ’d cogitate the cosmic hymn would be an easy alternative for Kelly , he said he ’d pick “ Modern Love ” as his favorite Bowie song .
6. THE ISS HAS A DISTINCT SMELL.
If you ’ve ever wondered what it smell out like aboard the International Space Station , the answer is : not particularly pleasant . Kelly delineate some segments of the structure as sustain an “ antiseptic smell , ” while other areas have an odor that “ smells like garbage . ” He also take that outer space has a classifiable odour : “ [ The ] olfactory property of blank space when you enter the hatch smells like glow metal to me . ”
7. SPACE TOILETS PRESENT A WHOLE NEW SET OF ISSUES.
Kelly was asked by one Reddit exploiter to remember the creepiest affair he has ever play on the Book of Job , and the answer he gave highlights one of the less glamorous aspects of infinite biography . “ Generally it has to do with the bathroom , ” he said . His most recent tutelar endeavor involved strip up a “ Imperial gallon - sized ball of urine ” shuffle with acid used to keep the pipe clear .
8. EARTH-BASED SNEEZING ETIQUETTE APPLIES IN SPACE.
Sneezing in a zero gravity environs sound like a recipe for calamity , but the protocol astronauts follow to keep sneezes contained is the same one they take on Earth . " I just sneeze doubly come into my crew quarters . And I do what I do on Earth and cover my oral cavity with my deal , " said Kelly . " If I did n’t do that , it ’s possible the sternutation could be found float in another faculty . I loosely do n’t sneeze into open gentle wind on Earth or here in infinite . "
9. SPACE HAS CHANGED HIS ATTITUDE TOWARD NATURE.
grant to Kelly , the one matter he will forever do differently after he safely returns home is “ appreciate nature more . ”
