Kelly, Scott (1964-…), is an American astronaut known for his extensive career in space. During his career, he spent a total of 520 days in space. From 2015 to 2016, he spent 340 consecutive days in space aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Kelly’s identical twin brother, Mark Kelly, was also an astronaut.
Scott Kelly was selected to be an astronaut by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1996. On his first spaceflight, in 1999, he served as pilot of the space shuttle Discovery. During the mission, shuttle astronauts repaired and upgraded the Hubble Space Telescope. Kelly commanded the shuttle Endeavour on a 2007 mission to continue construction of the International Space Station. He later commanded the station from November 2010 to March 2011.
In March 2015, Kelly and the Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko arrived at the International Space Station. They took part in a one-year mission to examine the health effects of spending long periods in space. Kelly’s brother Mark, who remained on Earth, also took part in the study. Over the course of the mission and after Scott’s return from space, doctors evaluated and compared the brothers’ health. During the yearlong mission, Kelly posted popular updates and pictures from the ISS on social media. Shortly after returning to Earth in March 2016, Kelly retired from NASA.
Scott Joseph Kelly was born Feb. 21, 1964, in Orange, New Jersey. He earned a B.S. degree in electrical engineering from the Maritime College of the State University of New York, in New York City, in 1987. He then joined the U.S. Navy, serving as an aviator and test pilot. He earned an M.S. degree in aviation systems from the University of Tennessee, in Knoxville, in 1996. In addition to his work in space, Kelly has filled several roles for NASA on the ground. In the early 2000’s, he served as the NASA director of operations at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia. In 2002, he commanded the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) habitat on the ocean floor off the coast of Florida. At NEEMO, Kelly and his crewmates simulated future piloted space missions.
