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An American astronaut and Russian cosmonaut launched into space Friday to attempt something their two countries have never done together before: a one-year mission on the International Space Station that could help one day send humans to Mars.

The epicone-year space missionlaunched NASA's Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko into orbit aboard a Russian Soyuz space capsule at 3:42 p.m. EDT (1942 GMT) today (March 27) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, where it was early Saturday morning local time. Also flying on the Soyuz is cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, a crewmember who will live and work aboard the orbiting outpost for about six months, the usual length of time people spend on the station.

"A year in space starts now," NASA spokesperson Dan Huot said at launch.You can check out avideo of the history-making launchas well. [The One-Year Space Mission: Full Coverage]

It should take Padalka, Kelly and Kornienko about 6 hours to reach the space station. If all goes according to plan, the three crewmembers will link up with the space laboratory at around 9:36 p.m. EDT (0136 March 28 GMT), and you canwatch the docking live on Space.comvia NASA TV starting at 8:45 p.m. EDT (0045 March 28 GMT). The hatches between the two spacecraft are scheduled to open at 11:15 p.m. EDT (0315 March 28 GMT), allowing the three space fliers to enter the station. The hatch opening will also air live on Space.com at that time.

Scientists will usehealth and other datacollected from Kelly and Kornienko during their yearlong mission to learn more about how long-duration spaceflight affects the human body. While researchers know a lot about what happens to people who live in space for six months, they don't know how the body changes with a longer stay in microgravity.

Acrewed Mars mission a huge goal for NASA in the future could take 500 days or more, according to the space agency. Therefore, learning more about the potential problems astronauts could experience during a long mission is important for NASA officials.

Kelly's identical twin brother (and former NASA astronaut) Mark Kelly will participate in experiments on the ground to help scientists monitoring his brother in space. The Kelly twins will be monitored before, during and after Scott's spaceflight for a number of experiments chosen by NASA officials.

"Today, we launch an American astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut to live and work in space for an entire year the longest continuous stretch an American astronaut will have been in space," NASA administrator Charles Bolden wrote in aSpace.com-exclusive op-ed. "It's an important stepping-stone on our journey to Mars, and will give us detailed medical data recorded throughout the one-year expedition."

Kornienko and Kelly have been training for this yearlong mission for about two years, but this won't be the first time the astronauts have flown to space.

Before this mission, Kelly logged 180 days in orbit during two space shuttle flights and one previous space station mission. By the end of this mission (scheduled to last about 342 days, just shy of a year), Kelly will have logged 522 days in space, according to NASA.

Continued here:
US, Russian astronauts begin one-year space mission

Its official: The first American to spend a #YearInSpace has arrived.

Astronaut Scott Kelly joined two Russian cosmonauts on Friday in a rocket bound for the International Space Station. They left Kaikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 3:42 p.m. ET, and arrived at 9:36 p.m.,taking less than six hours. Yes, it takes less time to fly to the International Space Station than it normally does to fly from New York to London.

Kelly will stay at the International Space Station (ISS) until March 2016, along with Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko, who will be the fifth Russian to spend a year in space. The other cosmonaut, Gennady Padalka, will spend about six months at the station.

What is the purpose in having humans spend a year in space?

One of the main reasons space missions are opting for longer periods of time in orbit is to study the effects space has on the human body. Living in tight quarters in a different gravitational environment could have implications over a period of time. Discovering and addressing these effects may give astronauts the answers needed to prepare for longer space expeditions, such as a manned mission to Mars that could last as long as three years.

This is an important step forward to start utilizing ISS more effectively in preparation for human missions to Mars, Chris Carberry, executive director of Explore Mars, told FoxNews.com. We look forward to more ambitious missions at ISS and beyond that help achieve human landings on Mars in the 2030s.

Ambitions to travel to or even colonize Mars have been on the rise in recent years. In February, Netherlands-based nonprofit Mars One narrowed its 100,000 applicants for a one-way trip to Mars down to 100. The finalists will spend the next decade training and learning how to work efficiently as a team. The final pool will be narrowed to 24 people, who will break into four groups of six to be launched every two years, starting in 2025. If they make the trip, there are no plans for them to return.

This private venture mission is an indication of the widespread curiosity in a mission to start colonization elsewhere in the solar system and that a large number of individuals want to space travel even if it means they'll never return to earth. However, there are many flaws with the Mars One plan, including funding and the ability to even colonize Mars, a planet that has yet to have a manned expedition.

And without spending long periods in space, it is difficult to know the possible side effects of a three-year Mars trip, and how they can be prevented.

Kelly may be one of the best choices for someone to spend a year in space to study the effects on the body. Not only is he a decorated space explorer he is a veteran of three space flights and has logged over 180 days in space but he also has an identical twin brother, former astronaut Mark Kelly, who will remain on earth and serve as a baseline to study the effects.

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Astronaut twin Scott Kelly begins #YearInSpace: Why that long? (+video)

A workhorse Soyuz booster thundered to life and climbed into a dark Kazakh sky Friday, carrying NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko on a four-orbit voyage to the International Space Station to kick off a marathon 342-day mission, the longest flight ever attempted by an American.

With spacecraft commander Gennady Padalka strapped into the command module's center seat, flanked on the left by flight engineer Kornienko and on the right by Kelly, the Soyuz TMA-16M rocket's main engines ignited with a roar at 3:42:57 p.m. EDT (GMT-4; 1:43 a.m. Saturday local time), pushing the booster away from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

A Soyuz TMA-16M spacecraft launches to the International Space Station with NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian Cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko and Gennady Padalka on board Saturday, March 28, 2015, Kazakh time (March 27 Eastern time) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Bill Ingalls/NASA, Getty Images

The International Space Station passed 260 miles above the launch site just a few moments earlier and after a smooth eight-minute 45-second climb to orbit, the Soyuz spacecraft was released from its upper stage booster, solar wings and navigation antennas deployed and the crew set off after its quarry.

"Good luck, Captain. Make sure to @Instagram it. We're proud of you," President Obama tweeted from his White House account. Added First Lady Michelle Obama: "We have liftoff! @StationCDRKelly just launched for the @Space_Station on his #YearInSpace. Good luck, Captain."

The autonomous rendezvous went smoothly and Padalka, one of Russia's most experienced cosmonauts, monitored a picture-perfect docking at the upper Poisk module at 9:33 p.m.

Two hours later, after extensive leak checks, hatches were opened and Expedition 43 commander Terry Virts, cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov and European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti welcomed their new crewmates aboard with hugs and handshakes.

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Astronauts begin one-year space station mission