By Amanda Wills & Andrew Freedman From Mashable

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz rocket on Friday for a year-long mission that will reveal more about humans in space and get us one step closer to Mars.

Scientists will study astronaut Kelly’s health in tandem with his identical twin, Mark, a retired astronaut. Mark Kelly will remain on Earth and undergo hundreds of experiments while his brother is in space. Scott Kelly’s mission is about double the length of a typical ISS mission.

Although human spaceflight to Mars is more than a decade away, it will be a mission that is at least 500 days long, which would put a lot of pressure on the human body. NASA scientists hope the tests on the Kelly brothers will help them understand how to better prepare for an extreme journey of that nature.

Speaking to Mashable by satellite phone from a training facility in Star City, Russia, Kelly said the mission will provide opportunities and insight on where we need to investigate further before going to Mars.

“I do see myself as being part of that future,” Kelly said, speaking of NASA’s plans for deep space exploration.

Kelly launched to the ISS on Friday at 3:42 p.m. EDT with Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko and Gennady Padalka, who will live on the station for about six months. And Russia is setting a record as well on this mission. Padalka will become the new record-holder for most cumulative time spent in space by any human.

Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov holds the record for longest consecutive time in space; he spent 437 days in orbit in 1994 to 1995.

IMAGES:
Expedition 43 lifts off to the ISS on March 27, 2015. IMAGE: NASA
Astronaut Kelly just a minute after liftoff as the Soyuz was traveling more than 4,000 mph. Screen Shot
Expedition 43 Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko of the Russian Federal Space Agency IMAGE: NASA

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