Incredible photo shows an astronaut celebrating Hanukkah from space

jessica meir nasa

NASA astronaut Jessica Meir posted an incredible Hanukkah greeting from the 250 miles above Earth to social media on Sunday.
Her Instagram and Twitter posts featured Meir wearing festive socks inside the International Space Station overlooking the planet.
"Happy Hanukkah to all those who celebrate it on Earth!" she wrote in a caption alongside the picture.
The photos have garnered tens of thousands of likes and comments from social media users also celebrating the eight-day Jewish festival of lights.
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NASA astronaut Jessica Meir posted an incredible Hanukkah greeting from the 250 miles above Earth.

Meir, who is of Swedish-Israeli descent and grew up in the US, posted the awe-inspiring photo to Instagram and Twitter on the first night of Hanukkah, featuring a pair of holiday-themed socks which had Hanukkah emblems including the hanukkiah (candelabra) and the Star of David.

Her festive footwear is seen from inside the International Space Station, where she is currently working aboard as part of NASA's Expedition 61 and 62. The space station orbits Earth from 250 miles above.

Happy Hanukkah to all those who celebrate it on Earth! #HappyHanukkah

A post shared by Jessica Meir (@astro_jessica) on Dec 22, 2019 at 4:35pm PST on Dec 22, 2019 at 4:35pm PST

"Happy Hanukkah to all those who celebrate it on Earth!" she wrote in a caption alongside the picture.

Meir, who also posted the photo to Twitter, has received tens of thousands of likes and comments from people around the world also celebrating the eight-day Jewish festival of lights.

The International Space Station followed up on Twitter with a season's greeting featuring Meir and her fellow astronauts Christina Koch, Drew Morgan, and Commander Luca Parmitano, who are all spending the holidays apart from their families.

"As a child growing up, I was fortunate enough to celebrate two different holidays all through the holiday season, both Christmas and Hanukkah," she said in the video message.

"So whatever it is you're celebrating this holiday season, we hope that you find peace and love, and enjoy spending time with those around you who are important."

Although astronauts aboard the International Space Station are spending the holidays apart from their families, they have the holiday spirit — and some of the most important festive supplies. 🎄 Seasons greetings @Astro_Luca, @Astro_Christina, @Astro_Jessica and @AstroDrewMorgan! pic.twitter.com/vrsfZQEoTK
— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) December 23, 2019

Meir and Koch conducted the first-female spacewalk in October, spending hours outside the International Space Station to fix a faulty battery part. It was Meir's first spacewalk and Koch's fourth.

According to Business Insider's Morgan McFall-Johnsen, spacewalks, formally called extravehicular activities or EVAs, are routine yet risky operations. During these tasks, the astronauts put on bulky spacesuits and step outside the ISS.

The ISS has conducted 220 spacewalks since its construction in December 1998.

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