The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in Space

The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in SpaceAfter nearly a year spent floating in space, Scott Kelly’s feet have touched back down on Earth. The U.S. astronaut, along with Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko, and Sergey Volkov, just landed the Russian-built Soyuz spacecraft in Kazakhstan on March 1st 2016. 

The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in Space

Kelly seen working outside of the International Space Station during a spacewalk on Nov. 6, 2015. (Image via NASA)
The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in Space

Among those excited to see Kelly's return to Earth are his family and identical twin brother Mark Kelly. Mark is actually a crucial element to the scientific research that is the reason for this record-breaking mission. 

Prior to landing, Scott had reported that "physically I feel pretty good... but the hardest part is being isolated in the physical sense from people on the ground who are important to you. There's a loss of connection."

Above: Scott Kelly (left) and Mikhail Kornienko (right). (Image via NASA)
The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in Space

A first shot of astronaut Kelly upon his return to Earth. (Image via NASA)
The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in Space

The U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns to Earth After a Record-Breaking 340 Days in Space

The Soyuz descends to Earth under its parachute on March 1, 2016. (Image via NASA)

via [Mashable, BBCNews, CNN]