Labor Day Comes to the International Space Station

It might sound a little odd, but the three American astronauts who have been living aboard the International Space Station (ISS) are, just like the rest of us on Earth, getting the day off for Labor Day. Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir and Anil Menon were told by mission control on Friday that today, September 7, is officially their holiday.

Their French colleague, ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot—who made headlines earlier this year as the first French woman to step outside the station on a spacewalk—will also be off duty. The crew will be swapping the usual work‑load for a few extra hours of sleep, personal projects, and perhaps a quick video chat with family back home.

It’s not a uniform break for everyone up there. The three Russian cosmonauts—Pyotr Dubrov, Andrey Fedyaev and Anna Kikina—are still on the clock. NASA explained they’ll be busy monitoring the departure of the Progress 94 cargo ship, which is scheduled to undock later this week and burn up in the atmosphere after dumping a handful of trash and obsolete equipment.

Later in the week a fresh Progress 96 vehicle will launch from Baikonur and dock automatically to the Poisk module, keeping the station supplied. So while the Americans and the French are enjoying a day of relative leisure, the Russians are keeping the station’s logistical lifelines humming.

Long‑duration missions on the ISS generally follow a terrestrial‑style work schedule: weekdays for science and maintenance, weekends and major holidays off. This routine isn’t just a perk—it’s essential for keeping crews healthy, both physically and mentally, when they’re confined to a tin can orbiting 400 kilometres above us.

Of course, “celebrating” looks a bit different in micro‑gravity. No barbecues or fireworks, because open flames are a strict no‑no on the station. The crew might instead share a video call with loved ones, play a quick game of ping‑pong, or simply float around the module while watching a favorite movie.

Even with the different time zones and the occasional language barrier, the international crew members make a point of recognizing the big holidays together—Christmas, New Year’s, sometimes even Thanksgiving—so the isolation doesn’t feel quite so stark. It’s a small reminder that, no matter how far we travel, we’re still celebrating the same human moments.