U.S. astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch
U.S. astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina KochReuters

NASA astronaut Jessica Meir, whose father is an Israeli of Iraqi Jewish descent, spoke with Galei Tzahal's Efi Triger after returning to earth.

"It's been about a month now [since returning], I think I'm still in the process of acclimating. It's been a little strange for us at this time since we came back to a completely different earth than the one we left," she said, referring to the corona crisis. "That added into it is something that changes the readjustment period, as well. But it does take some time just for our bodies to adjust to being in gravity again."

She said that coming back to a world full of corona restrictions and masks "was quite difficult when you're an astronaut that has been in contact with so few people and away from your family and friends for so long," and lamented "not being able to have that physical interaction, not getting those hugs."

However, she noted that she and her fellow astronauts, despite being at home, "have been quite busy since our return. Because we're in this critical period where all the different physiological experiments and medical data needs to be collected right away before we readapt and reacclimate to the gravity environment."