It’s fair to say NASA astronaut Scott Kelly – who is tied for the longest stay in the International Space Station (ISS) – knows more about what it’s like to actually be inside the orbiting headquarters than anyone else.
Now Kelly – who has since retired – has revealed the ISS smells like jail, citing the similarities in their ‘combinations of antiseptic, garbage, and body odor.’
While touring Harris County Jail in Texas, Kelly said he got a whiff in one room that transported him right back to his days on the ISS.
Astronaut Scott Kelly – who is tied for the longest stay in ISS – knows more about what it’s like to actually be inside the galactic headquarters than anyone else. He’s revealed the ISS smells like jail, citing the similarities in their ‘combinations of antiseptic, garbage, and body odor’
In an interview about the experiences detailed in his upcoming space memoir Endurance, Wired asked Kelly if he ever finds himself in a place where the smells trigger a memory of being in space.
‘I was touring the Harris County Jail, and there’s this room that smells like space station – combination of antiseptic, garbage, and body odor,’ he said.
‘You know how on Earth, with gravity, stuff tends to rise or fall depending on its weight compared to air?’
‘On the ISS, that doesn’t happen, so smells can kind of linger.’
He explained that people in the ISS use deodorant, rinse off, shower, and that the smell isn’t that bad, ‘but there’s a little body odor going on for sure.’
‘Mostly it’s just exercise clothes people wear for a couple weeks without washing.’
NASA says residents of the ISS only change their socks and underwear every other day, and shirts and pants every 10 days.
While touring Harris County Jail in Texas (right), Kelly said he got a whiff in one room that transported him right back to his days on the ISS (left)
It might sound unsanitary to earthlings but, according to the agency, these garments do not get as dirty in space as they do on earth.
In the interview, Kelly also spoke to what being in space does to your body and how that will affect human’s ability to get to Mars.
Explaining that it would take 200 days to get there and 200 days to get back, he said he thinks we can send humans for year-long stays.
In the interview, Kelly also spoke to what being in space does to your body and how that will affect human’s ability to get to Mars. Explaining that it would take 200 days to get there and 200 days to get back, he said he thinks we can send humans for year-long stays
Without artificial gravity, however, he thinks we’d run into problems with keeping humans on the red planet for two years or more.
‘Based on my experience of ever-increasing durations of spaceflights – from eight days to 13 days to 159 to 340 – I think going into the two-year mark would be a big challenge, especially without artificial gravity,’ he said.
‘Returning to gravity would be profoundly difficult, physiologically.’
HOW DID SCOTT KELLY’S DNA CHANGE IN SPACE?
Kelly has provided more insight onto what space does to the human body thanks to the famous year-long ‘Twin Study’ conducted with his twin brother.
While Scott Kelly lived aboard the ISS for 340 days from March 2015 to March 2016, his identical twin, Mark, remained on Earth.
The Kelly brothers have nearly identical genomes and similar life experiences, allowing for an unprecedented look at the physical effects of long-term spaceflight.
By comparing their DNA upon Scott Kelly’s return to Earth, NASA discovered he suffered mysterious mutations after the continuous year in space:
– Scott’s telomeres – the caps at the end of each chromosome – lengthened while in space
Kelly gave insight into what space does to the body with the ‘Twin Study’ conducted with his brother, Mark. The duo have nearly-identical genomes and similar life experiences, giving NASA a way to see how Scott’s DNA changed after a year on the ISS
– Telomeres are key to protecting DNA from damage and tend to shorten with age
– Interestingly, Scott’s telomeres shortened again once he was back on Earth
– The ratio of two groups of gut bacteria shifted while Scott was in space, likely due to his change in diet
– His gut bacteria levels returned to normal once he was back on Earth.
– NASA research has spotted hundreds of diverging genetic mutations in Scott and Mark’s genomes.
– The research team speculate that a ‘space gene’ could have been activated while Scott was in orbit
Kelly has spoken openly about the conditions in space.
In a Reddit AMA last year, he told fans that living in the ISS did something very strange to his feet – it made the bottoms as soft as baby feet and the tops rough like alligator skin.
This is because the astronauts rarely wear shoes (only to exercise), so the calluses on the bottoms of their feet fall off while the the constant need to hook onto the foot rails set up to help navigate the zero-gravity station makes the tops rough.
Kelly has provided more insight into what space does to the human body thanks to the famous year-long ‘Twin Study’ conducted with his brother.
While Scott Kelly lived aboard the ISS for 340 days from March 2015 to March 2016, his identical twin, Mark, remained on Earth.
By comparing Scott Kelly’ DNA to his twin brother’s upon his return to Earth, NASA discovered he suffered mysterious mutations after the continuous year in space
The Kelly brothers have nearly identical genomes and similar life experiences, allowing for an unprecedented look at the physical effects of long-term spaceflight.
By comparing their DNA upon Scott Kelly’s return to Earth, NASA discovered he suffered mysterious mutations after the continuous year in space.
To their surprise, the researchers found that Scott Kelly’s telomeres – the caps on the ends of chromosomes – grew to be longer than Mark’s.
Telomeres are involved in the repair of damaged DNA and key to preventing ageing.
His telomeres soon returned to their normal, pre-flight lengths after he returned to the ground, and the team is working to determine what this means.
They also noted changes in DNA methylation – the reversible addition of a chemical marker to DNA that can affect gene expression, according to Nature.
With all that space does to your body, Kelly (pictured) isn’t sure he could’ve stayed up there much longer. ‘There was one point where I aggravated a hernia and had to take Ativan, which is a muscle relaxer,’ he told Wired
While DNA methylation decreased in Scott while he was in orbit, it simultaneously increased in Mark.
And, the levels returned close to normal for both men soon after Scott returned.
In addition, the researchers also found differences in gene-expression signatures.
While these changes are common on Earth, they appeared to be much larger than normal in Scott.
Scientists aren’t yet sure why the changes occur or what any of it means, but they speculate that a ‘space gene’ could have been activated while Scott was in orbit.
With all that space does to your body, he isn’t sure he could’ve stayed up there much longer.
‘There was one point where I aggravated a hernia and had to take Ativan, which is a muscle relaxer,’ Kelly told Wired.
‘But it’s also used as an antianxiety medication, and I definitely noticed that effect.’
‘I didn’t really care anymore – I think I told my flight surgeon that I could stay up there another year, but I doubt the feeling would’ve lasted.’
But even though he isn’t confident he could’ve lasted much longer, he says he has a special ‘attachment to the space station.’ He, however, doesn’t think it’s a jumping-off point to Mars and says that idea is ‘kind of science-fiction-y.’
But even though he isn’t confident he could’ve lasted much longer, he says he has a special ‘attachment to the space station.’
When Wired asked if the ISS should be sold to a private company when its funding runs out in 2024, he said ‘I’d rather do that than let it fall into the Pacific Ocean,’ pointing to his memories there.
But he added he doesn’t think it’s a viable business option.
‘A multibillion-dollar investment in the ISS is not going to have a multibillion-dollar return anytime soon.’
He doesn’t see it as a jumping-off point to Mars, either, and says that idea is ‘kind of science-fiction-y.’
‘I don’t know the orbital mechanics of Mars very well, but the space station could just be in the wrong orbit,’ he said.
‘Just visualizing that against the plane of our solar system, I don’t think it would work well to to Mars.’