Christina H. Koch has been away from home awhile. The NASA astronaut recently completed 328 days in outer space, setting a record for her gender, according to Buzzfeed, and the second-longest spaceflight in NASA history. Her crew was working on experiments in “biology, technology development, and the search for evidence of dark matter.”
#CongratsChristina on completing her first journey into space! Read more about @NASA Astronaut Christina Hammock Koch's record-setting mission and her return to Earth https://t.co/lFe4niy7o5 pic.twitter.com/P2OcfMQP7v
— US Embassy Ghana (@USEmbassyGhana) February 10, 2020
Sounds extremely cool and important, but there are still things on this planet worth coming back to. And there were probably a lot of things that Koch wanted to do as soon as she touched down again, like eat regular ice cream, but she must have been excited to be reunited with her friends and family, too.
And her dog.
On Thursday, Koch shared the moment when she and her little puppy reconnected on social media, captioning it, “Not sure who was more excited. Glad she remembers me after a year!”
Not sure who was more excited. Glad she remembers me after a year! pic.twitter.com/sScVXHMHJn
— Christina H Koch (@Astro_Christina) February 13, 2020
She certainly does. You can see the dog watching at the door, absolutely freaking out as she recognizes Koch coming towards the house. Once her owner gets inside, she’s even more excited running back and forth between the two humans as though to say, “Can you believe this? Are you seeing this?!”
Koch added some more info about this good dog on Instagram, writing, “That’s Sadie Lou, our LBD (little brown dog). Best breed for a best friend.”
There is an entire genre of YouTube videos that show dogs greeting long-lost friends, like students who have been away at school or veterans who have been on tour, and they’re always the sweetest most heartbreaking moments of connection and love. This is a nice spin on an old favorite. People are losing it over this video almost as much as Sadi Lou lost it over her returning space queen:
Engineer Christina Hammock Koch holds the record for longest stay in space (for a woman), was one of 2 astronauts who carried out the first all-female spacewalk.
And her dog missed her very much. ???? https://t.co/EKpgcMDx9K
— Kiko Enjani (@KikoEnjani) February 14, 2020
I was once gone for 3 months and my dog reacted the same way. She didn't leave my side for the next 2 months,always checking that I was near her. https://t.co/V12QbWiz6S
— Chirpless (@Chirpless1) February 14, 2020
It’s good to know that if you are ever launched into the darkness of outer space, someone back home is at the door waiting.
