• Newsfeed

The Force Is With These Astronauts Posing as Jedis Before Their Mission

1 minute read
By Olivia B. Waxman

Astronauts bound for the International Space Station have posed as Jedis holding lightsabers in a hilarious Star Wars-themed poster for their mission, Expedition 45.

Photographed are Russian cosmonauts Sergei Volkov (top right) and Oleg Kononenko (top left), Mikhail Kornienko (middle right), Japan’s Kimiya Yui (middle left), and NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren (bottom left) and Scott Kelly (bottom right). The poster’s tagline “the science continues” is especially apt after Kelly’s recent appearance on the cover of TIME. NASA will be studying his identical twin, former astronaut Mark Kelly, on Earth during Scott’s year-long stay in space, which is expected to set a single-mission record for an American astronaut.

Past publicity posters include a parody of Pirates of the Caribbean (Expedition 30), The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Expedition 42), and the Beatles’ album Abbey Road (Expedition 26).

Read next: Meet the Twins Unlocking the Secrets of Space

Astronaut Twins: Mark and Scott Kelly, the Early Years

October 1965: Scott, left, and Mark with TK
At age 1, Scott, left, and Mark with their mother, Patricia Kelly in Oct. 1965.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
Scott and Mark on the porch in 1965
Scott and Mark on their porch in 1965.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
June 1966
At age 2, Mark and Scott in 1966Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
December 1966: Mark and Scott in West Orange, N.J.
Mark and Scott building a snowman in West Orange, N.J in Dec. 1966.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
1967: Scott, left, and Mark
At age 3, Scott, left, and Mark wearing matching attire in 1967.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
Aug. 1967: Mark (left) and Scott with their MOM CK? at the Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, N.J.
Mark, left and Scott with their mother, Patricia Kelly at the Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, N.J in Aug. 1967.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
April 1968: Mark, left, and Scott
At age 4, Mark, left, and Scott in April 1968.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
1970: Mark, left, and Scott on the Jersey Shore
At age 6, Mark, left, and Scott at the beach on the Jersey Shore in 1970Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
1970, Mark and Scott at home in West Orange, N.J. on Christmas Day
Mark and Scott at home in West Orange, N.J. on Christmas Day in 1970.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
1971: Mark, left, and Scott in 1971
At age 7, Scott, right, was the pitcher and Mark played second base in 1971.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
April 1972: Mark (left) and Scott at home in West Orange, N.J.
At age 8, Mark, left, and Scott at home in West Orange, N.J in April 1972.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
1974: Scott (left) and Mark with their mother, TK NAME
At age 10, Scott, left, and Mark with their mother Patricia Kelly in 1974.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly
1979: Scott, left, and Mark pictured with TK?
At age 15, Scott, left, and Mark with their father, Richard Kelly in 1979. Richard retired as a Captain from the West Orange, N.J., Police Department.Courtesy Mark and Scott Kelly

More Must-Reads from TIME

Write to Olivia B. Waxman at olivia.waxman@time.com