NASA has safely launched astronauts during the pandemic. Here’s how they did it
Four launches — including two historic missions from US soil — to the International Space Station carried on as planned, and the crews were able to remain safe on their journeys to and from Earth.
Quarantine has become the new normal for many over the last year, but it has long been part of the routine for astronauts launching to space.
“NASA’s had a robust quarantine plan for a long time,” said Robert Mulcahy, flight surgeon for the Health Stabilization Program at Johnson Space Center in Houston. “It’s nothing new for us. NASA implemented a prelaunch quarantine starting with the Apollo 14 mission (in 1971) because we saw some infectious disease occurrences in flight or in the preflight period for some of the earlier Apollo launches.”
Some of the Apollo astronauts experienced upper respiratory tract infections and gastroenteritis, so a preflight quarantine was put in place. While the specifics of quarantining before spaceflight have changed over the years, the basic tenants are the same, Mulcahy said.
Quaranting before flight can help prevent illnesses like cold and flu from occurring off our planet. The health and welfare of the crew is always paramount, according to the agency.
Astronauts and those in the Health Stabilization Program receive vaccines for preventable infectious diseases.
Before the pandemic, astronauts launching to the International Space Station would quarantine for two weeks. They were focused on things that have become commonplace for everyone — social distancing and good respiratory and hand hygiene.
This included making sure any people who came in contact with the crew knew what a good quarantine looks like — something we’re all familiar with now, Mulcahy said.
Launching during a pandemic
When concerns about the pandemic and quarantining spread globally in March 2020, NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy was already in Baikonur, Kazakhstan preparing for his April 9, 2020, launch to the space station alongside Russian cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner.
The crew did their usual two-week quarantine and the launch happened as planned, albeit with some changes. Travel restrictions prevented some of the astronauts’ families, media and industry officials from attending the launch. Those involved in the launch were all seen keeping 6 feet apart and wearing masks.
Ahead of quarantine, the astronauts followed the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations regarding coronavirus. The team members stayed in their crew quarters in Baikonur, didn’t have direct contact with anyone who wasn’t precleared by flight surgeons and focused on preparing for their flight, studying, resting, exercise and making video calls to friends and family members.
On Earth, NASA ground teams such as flight and mission control were also affected by the pandemic. Handovers between teams across shifts occurred in two different rooms to minimize contact.
It was Cassidy’s third spaceflight, but the early days of the pandemic were already shaping his preflight experience.
“We knew we would be in quarantine, but we didn’t know the rest of the world would join us,” Cassidy said from the space station in April. “Leaving that behind, my heart goes out to everyone. This mission feels different.”
Just days later, NASA astronauts Dr. Andrew “Drew” Morgan and Jessica Meir were scheduled to return to Earth after spending nine and seven months on the space station, respectively. They returned to a different world than the one they launched from, one where coronavirus wasn’t a concern.
“It will be difficult to not give hugs to family and friends after being up here for seven months,” Meir said from the space station in April. “I think I will feel more isolated on Earth than here because it’s expected up here. We’re busy with amazing pursuits and tasks and don’t feel the isolation. But it will be wonderful to see family and friends virtually and at a distance.”
The agency already had a protocol in place for returning astronauts that still includes a postlanding medical check by flight doctors. The doctors and other NASA teams help the astronauts reacclimate to Earth’s gravity, getting them up and walking soon after landing. In the weeks after, they’re monitored to make sure they’re healthy.
This time, the protocols were more extensive, incorporating CDC recommendations on infection control during postflight medical testing and readaptation. Social distancing, handwashing and the extensive cleaning of surfaces were implemented, and the crew were limited to who they came in contact with. Any NASA team members who were sick were encouraged to stay home.
Three more launches followed in 2020, including Demo-2 and Crew-1, two historic NASA and SpaceX launches sending the first crewed missions from US soil since 2011.
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