Astronauts about to leave planet in quarantine

A NASA astronaut about to leave the planet for the next six months said he was stressed about the coronavirus outbreak like everyone else, even though he has been in heavy quarantine.

Chris Cassidy said Thursday from Star City, Russia, that when you're an astronaut close to launch, "lots of people" are concerned about your health.

Cassidy and his two Russian crewmates, Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner have been taking precautions to stay germ-free before their April 9 launch to the International Space Station, frequently washing their hands and keeping a safe distance from others.

Cassidy won't have his family - or any other guests - at his Kazakhstan launch.

In fact, he expects to say goodbye to wife Julie on Friday, three weeks sooner than expected because of the coronavirus outbreak.

"It's none like any other time in our in our lives as a generation, really, right. Like to me, this is goes into. Where were you when JFK was shot? Where were you when you landed on the moon and where were you when Corona virus was happening? And I'll have my own interesting story to tell in years to come," Cassidy told the Associated Press.

On top of the global coronavirus outbreak, Cassidy, 50, a US Navy captain and former SEAL, is coping with a rare late-in-the-game crew switch.

He will spend six-and-a-half months at the ISS with two Russians named to the flight just a month ago, after one of the original cosmonauts suffered an eye injury.

Liftoff remains set for April 9.

The same goes for NASA's Mission Control in Houston, where additional hand-sanitizing stations are set up.

The space station crew will drop from six to three a week after his arrival.

It will remain at three people until SpaceX launches two NASA astronauts, as early as May, or another crew arrives on a Russian Soyuz capsule in the fall.