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The Spike of Fascinating & Unexpected





SPIKE 27
→ FOOD IN SPACE.



© 1. NASA/JSC — ­The Skylab program of the 1970s used trays like this to keep food in place / 2. NASA — A can of lamb (барáнина in Russian) on the International Space Station (ISS) / 3. NASA — Leland D. Melvin aboard the ISS / 4. NASA — Metal tray made for easy preparation and serving of in-space meals for crew members / 5. NASA — Astronaut Karen Nyber, Expedition 36 flight engineer, with a snack of peanut butter and chocolate sandwiched between two waffles / 6. NASA — Whole fresh fruits and other foods float around NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, who participated in a study aboard Expedition 63 to evaluate how an improved diet would affect his physiology / 7. NASA/Space Frontiers/Getty Images — Astronaut Loren J. Shriver, Mission Commander of STS-46, attempts to eat floating sweets on the flight deck of the shuttle Atlantis during its orbit of the earth (1992) / 8. National Space Centre — Examples of 1980s and 1990s Soviet space food / 9. NASA — European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti prepares her lunch using the space food rehydrator aboard the ISS / 10. NASA — Expedition 65 Flight Engineer Megan McArthur seemingly juggles fresh peppers and avocados that were delivered to the ISS aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon resupply ship in June 2021 / 11. NASA/Don Pettit — “When in space, you can put peanut butter on both sides of your bread! Condiment usage is limited under Earth’s gravity, but not on ISS. However, unlike on Earth, where dropping your bread has a 50/50 chance of landing “jelly side down”, with this method it is 100%. High risk, high reward!” / 12. NASA/JSC — A “space cheeseburger” is seen floating inside the ISS with Expedition 50 flight engineer Peggy Whitson of NASA in the background. 

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Food in space refers to the specially prepared and packaged meals consumed by astronauts and cosmonauts during space missions. Space food must meet strict requirements to ensure it remains safe, nutritious, and palatable in the unique space environment, where conditions such as microgravity, limited storage space, and extended mission durations pose challenges to food preparation, packaging, and consumption. 

Space food is typically freeze-dried, dehydrated, or thermostabilised to remove moisture and prevent spoilage. It is packaged in vacuum-sealed pouches or containers to preserve freshness and prevent contamination. Meals are also carefully balanced to provide essential nutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals necessary for maintaining astronaut/cosmonaut health and performance during space missions. Interestingly, space travellers’ taste buds can change due to the microgravity environment. Many astronauts report that their sense of taste becomes blunted while in space, making foods taste less flavorful. As a result, NASA includes a variety of hot sauces and condiments in the food supplies to help make their meals more enjoyable. 

While preserving food is a demanding exercise, eating in space also presents unique challenges due to microgravity, which can cause food particles to float away and interfere with eating utensils, an issue known as Foreign Object Debris (FOD). FOD refers to any object, material, or substance that is located in an inappropriate place and poses a potential hazard to aircraft, vehicles, personnel, or equipment. FOD can be found on airport runways, taxiways, and aprons, as well as in the vicinity of aircraft and other critical operational areas. To address this issue, space food is often formulated to be easily consumed using utensils such as squeeze tubes, resealable pouches, and pre-cut or bite-sized portions. Astronauts/cosmonauts may also use food trays with Velcro or magnetic attachments to secure their meals and prevent them from floating away. For instance, because bread produces crumbs that can float around in the microgravity environment, potentially causing problems with the spacecraft’s equipment or getting into the inhabitants’ eyes, noses, or mouths, the use of tortillas instead of bread for sandwiches is privileged.




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