American astronaut Jessica Meir will find an earth upset next week, after almost seven months on board the International Space Station (ISS). She will exchange containment for another.
“It’s pretty surreal to see what’s going on on the planet below us,” said the 42-year-old astronaut during a live telephone conversation with journalists on Friday from the ISS alongside teammates Andrew Morgan and Chris Cassidy (there are also three Russians at the moment). “The Earth always looks so dazzling, seen from here, so it’s hard to believe all the changes that have happened since we got here.”
“I’m afraid of feeling more isolated on Earth than here”
Astronauts are isolation professionals: they generally spend six months or more confined to the station. Jessica Meir arrived in September.
But their confinement is wanted, unlike their congeners forced to shut themselves up at home because of the new coronavirus: it is even the achievement of a life, the fruit of years of training. And their days are highly regulated. They have no problem with childcare or shopping (they are regularly supplied with cargo capsules).
“I’m afraid of feeling more isolated on Earth than here,” says Jessica Meir. “Here we have a routine, we are very busy doing lots of amazing things, and we have this incredible view of the Earth below.”
Sport, hygiene and sleep recommended by astronauts
Their advice for successful containment withinISS are nevertheless simple, and begin with the respect of a very precise timetable.
“We have a program and we follow it to the letter,” said Andrew Morgan, 44, who arrived there in July 2019. “Exercise, personal hygiene, sleep, everything is planned. sticking to the schedule is very important. ” The other basic rule is “to be a good teammate”. “We are all the time thinking about how our actions affect others,” said the emergency physician recruited seven years ago by NASA.
This may be the bright side of the pandemic, concludes Jessica Meir: families and friends who are tightening their ties, talk more often, pay more attention. Perhaps we will learn to “treat each other with more humanity”.
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