Astronauts Celebrate the Holidays Among the Stars

Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are spending their holidays in space this year because their mission was extended on the ISS. The two were supposed to come back to Earth in February, but their stay was extended because of safety issues with Boeing's Starliner spacecraft.

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Their new date to leave is now March, as long as SpaceX's Dragon ship is ready.Celebrating the holidays in space has been done for a long time. During the holidays, scientists have been in space since 1968. The crew of Apollo 8 was the first to celebrate by reading from the Book of Genesis while they were in orbit around the Moon. Later, astronauts on Skylab 4 made a Christmas tree out of food tins.

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From 1987 to 1998, cosmonauts on MIR celebrated more than a dozen holidays.The seven-person ISS crew will keep up the practice this year by giving and receiving gifts, eating a holiday meal, and video calling family and friends.

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Williams and Wilmore are thrilled about the unexpected extension because it gives them a chance to experience the magic of space over the holidays, making it an unforgettable party in space.