Pre-Coronavirus Astronauts Return to a Post-Coronavirus Earth

The last month has abounded with stories of people whose missed news of the spread of the coronavirus — some via a Grand Canyon trip, some (Jared Leto, at least) via a meditation retreat. The flip side of that was experienced by a group of astronauts recently; they returned to Earth after over 200 days in space. Alternately, they returned to a planet that had been dramatically changed since they last set foot on its surface.

A vessel containing Jessica Meir, Andrew Morgan and Oleg Skripochka landed in Kazakhstan earlier today. Meir and Skripochka had spent the last 205 days in space; Morgan had been in orbit for 272.

More photos posted from the landing of @NASA astronauts @Astro_Jessica, @AstroDrewMorgan & @roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka! 📸 https://t.co/ZVXTOuz7cT pic.twitter.com/ab2cieq6pY

— NASA HQ PHOTO (@nasahqphoto) April 17, 2020

CNN notes in its report that the already-thorough process for checking up on astronauts after re-entry will be even more comprehensive this time out, given the ongoing pandemic. It’s a crisis that the astronauts felt especially connected to from space — particularly Morgan, who CNN notes is an emergency physician for the Army.

“I’m very proud to be part of that profession, but at the same time, I feel guilt that I am as separated from it as I could be right now,” Morgan told CNN.

Today’s date also held a historical significance for NASA: it was the 50th anniversary of the safe return of the crew of Apollo 13.

On this day 50 years ago – Apollo 13 astronauts Jack Swigert, Jim Lovell, and Fred Haise splashed down in the South Pacific Ocean, April 17, 1970. With the crew already aboard the ship, the Command Module is hoisted onto the U.S.S. Iwo Jima. pic.twitter.com/rgyrM4ZxXk

— NASA HQ PHOTO (@nasahqphoto) April 17, 2020

It’s an unnerving moment of synchronicity between a dramatic event in space exploration’s past and a chaotic time in its present.

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Tobias Carroll

Tobias Carroll lives and writes in New York City, and has been covering a wide variety of subjects — including (but not limited to) books, soccer and drinks — for many years. His writing has been published by the likes of the Los Angeles Times, Pitchfork, Literary Hub, Vulture, Punch, the New York Times and Men’s Journal. At InsideHook, he has…