The Russians Maxim Souraiev and Oleg Kotov, the Americans Timothy Creamer and Jeffrey Williams and the Japanese Soichi Noguchi appeared in front of a Christmas tree who seemed to be fixed at the ceiling of the ISS.

“The Earth remembers you and loves you. Never forget that you are our envoys in remote space”, declared the Father Christmas, installed at the sides of the chief of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, Anatoli Perminov.

Oleg Kotov transmitted the wishes of the astronauts to “all the boys and the girls of the country” whereas his/her son and the girl of Mr. Souraiev was present at the control center of the space flights like several Russian schoolboys.

Station ISS carries out 16 terrestrial revolutions of 24 hours and the cosmonauts will be able to thus celebrate the New year 16 times.