On Thanksgiving, if you want to eat like an astronaut, look
to "The Astronaut's Cookbook — Tales, Recipes and More," where NASA
veterans Charles Bourland and Gregory Vogt give a new behind-the-scenes look at
dining in outer space.
"A good meal is essential in space — the astronauts
have to be at maximum performance if they're going to do their job,"
Bourland explained. "It might even be life-saving."
The cost of food
Since even now it costs some $10,000 per pound or more to
launch something into space, NASA is eager to cut down on the weight of
payloads, which influences food. In the Gemini capsule, each astronaut was
allowed 1.7 lbs. of food per day, and even today's space shuttle crews are only
allowed 3.8 lbs. of food per person daily. Food must also last without
refrigeration, as fridges take up valuable space. Menus for astronauts are
still picked out some five months in advance, much like they have been since
the Gemini days.
Most food items are 90 percent water. As water is plentiful
on the space shuttle as it was in the Gemini and Apollo spacecraft — a
byproduct of the fuel cells that provide them all their power — freeze-dried
meals were common, entrees that astronauts rehydrated by adding water into food
pouches. However, "astronauts get tired of it pretty quick after a few
days," Bourland said.
On the other hand, power on the space station is provided by
huge solar panels, where water is not a byproduct. As a result,
thermostabilized food, which is more popular with astronauts, is becoming more
common there — a fancy way of saying items that are heat-processed to destroy
dangerous microbes, just like canned food on earth.
"I usually say we went from cubes and tubes to normal
food that you eat from an open container," said Bourland, a food scientist
who worked with NASA since Apollo 12.
Other types of space food
include irradiated meals sterilized with ionizing radiation, dried fruits and
beef, and snacks such as candy and nuts. Astronauts now even get a limited
supply of fresh fruits and vegetables that must be eaten within the first few
days of flight before they spoil.
"It's important to have a good meal in space whenever
you can when you're that far away from home," Vogt said.
Celebrities Emeril Lagasse and Rachael Ray contributed
recipes to NASA that are featured in "The Astronaut's Cookbook,"
including Lagasse's Kicked Up Bacon Cheese Mashed Potatoes. Recipes from
astronauts are provided as well.
The real issue — bathrooms
For years, NASA food scientists thought astronauts didn't
eat space food because quality was the problem. "That was the issue to
some extent, but on Apollo and even Gemini, the real problem was having to go
to the bathroom afterward," Bourland explained.
"Imagine if you're sitting tight next to your buddy in
a capsule, and you're going to the bathroom while he's trying to eat breakfast,
and the odor then lingers in there for hours afterward. A lot of astronauts
said they would rather not eat to avoid going to the bathroom," Bourland
said. "Installing toilets
in space actually solved a lot of nutrition problems."
Still, even now astronauts eat roughly half as much as they
should when in the space shuttle. "When they're on the shuttle, they're
always rushed for time, they've got all these things they need to do,"
Bourland said. "And quite a bit of people have motion sickness. Once
they're on the station though, they usually get back to a normal routine."
Flavor in microgravity
One long-term concern with eating in space is how
microgravity might impact taste.
"Vapors don't really rise from the
food in space — you wouldn't be able to smell it as well," Bourland
explained. "And in microgravity, bodily fluids tend to accumulate in the
upper body, resulting in congestion, which can also affect how food
tastes."
Some astronauts say there is a change, some don't.
"NASA did at least three experiments to test this, but there wasn't enough
data to say either way," Bourland said. "We usually try and keep most
of the food fairly mild in any case."
Pitfalls for space chefs
If you want to cook in outer space, here are hazards to
avoid:
- Carbonated beverages are a no-no. The bubbles inside
aren't buoyant in a weightless environment, so they randomly spread
throughout fluid, even after swallowing. This means burps in space often
unpleasantly come with a liquid spray, and "bubbles can go right
through the other way as well, really causing problems for
astronauts," Bourland said.
- Since powders can interfere dangerously with equipment,
salt comes in a watery solution, while pepper comes in oil. Picante sauce
and ketchup are available as well.
- Crumbs are problems too. In the early days of the space
program, cookies were covered in gelatin to minimize crumbs — "that's
what happens when you have food designed by engineers," Vogt said.
Nowadays they just use bite-size cookies that astronauts swallow whole,
reducing the chance of errant fragments. Also, instead of bread, in 1985
astronaut Mary Cleave and payload specialist Rodolfo Vela introduced
tortillas, as they have very few crumbs. "Tortillas are also popular
playthings — the astronauts toss them like Frisbees," Vogt said.
- Fresh oranges and bananas are unpopular. "They
produce a smell that lingers," Bourland explained. "And when
astronauts get into orbit, they may get nauseated, and then they associate
the smell of the fruit with their nausea."
- Freeze-dried shrimp cocktail is surprisingly popular.
"It looks pretty awful, but put water in there, and I've tried it,
it's amazing," Vogt said.
Tofu on the menu?
As to what the astronauts at the space station will actually
have for Thanksgiving
in space? They ordered nothing special for the holiday, although they have
irradiated smoked turkey and freeze-dried turkey tetrazzini on their menus if
they really want the bird.
"We're just always pleased to be in space — I don't
care what they give us," current space shuttle STS-129 mission commander
Charlie Hobaugh said. "It could be beef brisket. It could be tofu. It
doesn't matter to me. We're going to enjoy ourselves no matter what we
do."
"The tofu is a bit of a stretch," Hobaugh admitted
when his crewmates laughed at the suggestion during a preflight news
conference.
advertisement
