Space food

Space food are food products, specially created and processed for consumption by astronauts in outer space.

Early History

Russian

Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (1975)

The astronauts of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project received samples of Soviet space food when the combined crew dined together. Among the foods provided by Soyuz 19 were canned beef tongue, packaged Riga bread, and tubes of borscht and caviar. The borscht was labeled "vodka" as a joke.

United States

One of John Glenn's many tasks, as the first American to orbit Earth in 1962, was to experiment with eating in weightless conditions. Some experts had been concerned that weighlessness would impair swallowing. Glenn experienced no difficulties, however, and it was determined that microgravity did not affect the natural swallowing process.

Project Mercury (1959-1963)

Astronauts in later Mercury missions disliked the food that was provided. They ate bite-sized cubes, freeze-dried powders, and tubes of semiliquids. The astronauts found it unappetizing, experienced difficulties in rehydrating the freeze-dried foods, and didn't like having to squeeze tubes or collect crumbs.

Project Gemini (1965-1966)

Several of the food issues from the Mercury missions were addressed for the later Gemini missions. Tubes (often heavier than the foods they contained) were abandoned. Gelatin coatings helped to prevent bite-sized cubes from crumbling. Simpler rehydration methods were developed. The menus also expanded to include items such as shrimp cocktail, chicken and vegetables, toast squares, butterscotch pudding, and apple juice.

Astronaut John Young brought an unauthorized corned beef sandwich aboard the Gemini III mission and offered it to Virgil "Gus" Grissom. This resulted in potentially hazardous crumbs floating around the cabin of the spacecraft in the microgravity environment. [http://www.spaceline.org/flightchron/gemini3.html Gemini 3 Fact Sheet]

Apollo program (1961-1975)

The variety of food options continued to expand for the Apollo missions. The new availability of hot water made rehydrating freeze-dried foods simpler, and produced a more appetizing result. The "spoon-bowl" allowed more normal eating practices. Food could be kept in special plastic zip-closure containers, and its moisture allowed it to stick to a spoon.

Skylab (1973-1974)

Larger living areas on the Skylab space station allowed for an on-board refrigerator and freezer, which allowed perishable and frozen items to be stored and made the microgravity the primary obstacle. When Skylab's solar panels were damaged during its launch and the station had to rely on minimal power from the Apollo Telescope Mount until Skylab 2 crewmembers performed repairs, the refrigerator and freezer were among the systems that Mission Control kept operational. Menus included items such as processed meat products and ice cream. A dining room table and chairs, fastened to the floor and fitted with foot and thigh restraints, allowed for a more normal eating experience. The trays used could warm the food, and had magnets to hold eating utensils and scissors to open food containers.

Modern

Today, fruits and vegetables that can be safely stored at room temperature are eaten on space flights. Astronauts also have a greater variety of entrées to choose from, and many request personalized menus from lists of available foods including items like fruit salad and spaghetti. Astronauts sometimes request beef jerky for flights, as it is lightweight, nutritious, and can be utilized in orbit without packaging or other changes.

Cultural favorites

Korean

In April 2008, South Korea’s first astronaut, Yi So-yeon, was a crew member on the International Space Station and brought a special version of Korea's national dish, kimchi. It took three research institutes several years and millions of dollars to create a version of the fermented cabbage dish that was suitable for space travel. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/24/world/asia/24kimchi.html?ex=1361509200&en=4cb9efc63982cefb&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss Starship Kimchi: A Bold Taste Goes Where It Has Never Gone Before] ]

Jewish

In June 2008, Gregory Chamitoff brought bagels into space for the first time. He was on STS-124 for ISS Expedition 17, and brought with him 18 sesame seed Montreal-style bagels from his cousin's bakery. [ CTV.ca [http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080601/montreal_space_bagels_080601/20080601?hub=TopStories Montreal-born astronaut brings bagels into space] Sun. Jun. 1 2008 7:29 PM ET ; CTV National News - 1 June 2008 - 11pm TV newscast ] [ The Gazette (Montreal), [http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=6924c3b3-a4e3-4c05-b279-025fc9650627 Here's proof: Montreal bagels are out of this world] , "IRWIN BLOCK", Tuesday June 3 2008, Section A, Page A2 ]

Processing

Designing food for consumption in space is difficult. Foods must meet a number of criteria to be considered fit for space; first, the food must be physiologically appropriate, specifically, it must be nutritious, easily digestible, and palatable. Second, the food must be engineered for consumption in a zero gravity environment. As such, the food should be light, well packaged, quick to serve, and easy to clean up (foods that tend to leave crumbs, for example, are ill-suited for space). Finally, foods must require a minimum of energy expenditure throughout their use, i.e., they should store well, open easily, and leave little waste behind.

Carbonated drinks have been tried in space, but are not favored due to changes in burping caused by microgravity. cite web |author= Kloeris, Vickie|accessdate=2006-12-12 |date=May 1, 2001| title="Eating on the ISS" | url= http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/people/journals/space/kloeris/05-01-01.html| work=Field Journal:Vickie Kloeris |quote = Because there is no gravity, the contents of your stomach float and tend to stay at the top of your stomach, under the rib cage and close to the valve at the top of your stomach. Because this valve isn't a complete closure (just a muscle that works with gravity), if you burp, it becomes a wet burp from the contents in your stomach. ] Coca-Cola and Pepsi were first carried on STS-51-F in 1985. Coca-Cola has flown on subsequent missions in a specially-designed dispenser that utilizes BioServe Space Technologies hardware used for biochemical experiments. Space Station Mir carried cans of Pepsi in 1996.

Packaging

Packaging for space food serves the primary purposes of preserving and containing the food. The packaging however should also be light-weight, easy to dispose, and help in the preparation of the food for consumption. The packaging also includes a bar-coded label, which allows for the tracking of an astronaut's diet. The labels also specify the food's preparation instructions in both English and Russian.

Many foods from the Russian space program are packaged in cans and tinsBourland, Charles (2001) "Packaging foods for flight"— NASA FTCSC News, July 2001 ] . These are heated through electro-resistive (ohmic) methods, opened with a can-opener, and the food inside consumed directly. Russian soups are hydrated and consumed directly from their packages.Lu, Edward (2003) "Expedition 7: Eating at Cafe ISS", Greetings Earthlings:Ed's musings from space, [http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/crew/exp7/luletters/lu_letter3.html] ]

NASA space foods are packaged in composite retorts similar to that found in US Army MREs .

Types

There are several classification for food that is sent into spacecite web |author=NASA |accessdate=2006-12-12 |date= 2002-04-07| title="Food For Space Flight" | url=http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/reference/factsheets/food.html | work=Fact Sheet Library ] :
* "Beverages (B)" - Various rehydratable drinks.
* "Fresh Foods (FF)"- Foods that spoil quickly that needs to be eaten within the first two days of flight to prevent spoilage.
* "Irradiated (I) Meat" - Beef steak that is specially packaged and sterilized with ionizing radiation.
* "Intermediate Moisture (IM)" - Foods that have some moisture but not enough to cause immediate spoilage.
* "Natural Form (NF)" - Mostly unprocessed foods such as nuts, cookies and granola bars that are ready to eat.
* "Rehydratable (R) Foods" - Foods that have been dehydrated and allowed to rehydrate in hot water prior to consumption.
* "Thermostabilized (T)" - Foods that have been processed with heat to destroy microorganisms and enzymes that may cause spoilage.

More common staples and condiments do not have a classification and are known simply by the item name:
* "Shelf Stable Tortillas" - Tortillas that have been heat treated, specially package in an oxygen free nitrogen atmosphere to prevent the growth of mold.
* "Condiments" - Liquid salt solution, oily pepper paste, mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard.

References

External links

* [http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/living/spacefood/ NASA space food information page]
* [http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/astronauts/food-history.html History of Food in Space by NASA]
* [http://frontierindia.net/space-foods-in-dfrl-menu/ Indian Space Food History]
* [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10792763 Beyond Tang: Food in Space]