9 festive ISS holiday celebrations through the years

abdulmanannet77@gmail.comDecember 22, 2025

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9 festive ISS holiday celebrations through the years

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For the past 25 years, an intrepid group of astronauts have vacationed 250 miles above Earth. The crew living and working aboard the International Space Station (ISS) can eat their turkey (but can’t drink seltzer or use salt) and open presents while traveling at 17,500 miles per hour and circling their home planet every 90 minutes.

Despite this unique advantage, celebrations often resemble those that would take place here on Earth. NASA astronauts share special meals prepared by the Space Food Systems Laboratory at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where crews will select their menus with the help of nutritionists and food scientists before launch. Merchandise launches arriving ahead of special occasions often include bulk overwrapped bags filled with foods including clams, oysters, green beans and smoked salmon, as well as shelf-stable treats such as frosting, candy, almond butter and hummus.

ISS crew members will also take the opportunity to connect with loved ones via video calls. According to NASA, these discussions and holiday greetings sent back to Earth “are a reminder that even in space, home is never far away.”

Browse a quarter century of ISS holiday celebrations below. (Click to enlarge images in full screen.)

three male astronauts on board the ISS, one of them is holding a small Christmas tree — Expedition 4 crew members, former NASA astronauts Daniel Bursch and Carl Walz, along with Rosocosmos cosmonaut Yuri Onifriyenko, pose for a Christmas photo in December 2022. *Image: NASA.*

two astronauts posing with Christmas stockings — Expedition 13 crew members, Rosocosmos cosmonaut Valery I. Tokarav (left) and former NASA astronaut William McArthur, pose with Christmas stockings in December 2005. *Image: NASA*.

astronauts posing with Santa hats and a Christmas tree. the one wearing an elf hat is upside down — The six members of the Expedition 30 crew gathered in the US Destiny laboratory aboard the space station for a Christmas celebration in December 2011. *Image: NASA*.

female astronaut poses with Santa hat and floats — ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti photographed above the space station on December 20, 2014 during Expedition 42. *NASA image.*

5 astronauts pose with Christmas stockings — Expedition 50 crew members celebrate the holidays aboard the orbiting laboratory in December 2016. *Image: NASA*.

four astronauts gather around a table wearing Santa hats — Four Expedition 70 crewmates join inside the space station and join inside the space station’s Unity module for a Christmas Day meal in December 2023. From left: Flight engineer Koichi Wakata of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency); Commander Andreas Mogensen of ESA (European Space Agency); and NASA flight engineers Loral O’Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli. *Image: NASA.*

a female astronaut holds a Christmas decoration made of white plastic bags and a red nose to look like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer — NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Commander Suni Williams displays a Christmas decoration depicting a familiar reindeer aboard the ISS on December 16, 2024. The decoration was made with recently delivered surplus materials, carrying bags and Santa hats. *Image: NASA*.

two astronauts operate an amateur radio while wearing Santa hats — NASA astronauts Don Petit, Expedition 72 flight engineer (left) and Commander Suni Williams (right), pose for a fun holiday portrait while talking on a ham radio inside the space station’s Columbus laboratory module. *Image: NASA*.

To remind us here on Earth that we are all always connected, NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore and Don Pettit wish Earth a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays in a message recorded on December 23, 2024.