In 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri A. Gagarin became the first person to eat in space. He squeezed beef and liver paste from a toothpaste-like aluminum tube into his mouth. For dessert, he had chocolate sauce. In 1962, John Glenn ate applesauce, not because it was his favourite, but because back in the 1960s, nobody knew if the human body could even swallow food in zero gravity.
Food systems and menu items have come a long way since then. Today an astronaut’s meals are created not just based on optimal value of vitamins and minerals necessary for the environment of space, but also taste and texture.
The Space Food Systems Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston is responsible for the testing, preparation, and packaging of U.S. food to be delivered to the ISS. In India, Mysore’s Defence Food Research Lab focuses on development and packaging of food. Food evaluations are conducted eight to nine months in advance, with active inputs from the crew on their preferences on items and frequency amongst other things.
The food available spans across 4 types – rehydratable, thermostabilised, irradiated and natural form items. Even salt and pepper are available in liquid forms. Salt is dissolved in water and pepper suspended in oil; both are added using a dropper. Tortillas are famously a favourite amongst crews, not just because of the taste, but because they don’t produce as many crumbs, making it the safest bread to consume in a spacecraft.
Currently, for NASA missions, on average, an 8-day-cycle for meals is followed. Once decided, the same meals are repeated for months as limitations in research, development and storage leave little space for spontaneity.
Despite the engineering, the eight-month planning cycles, nutritional calculations, and storage limitations; astronauts still find ways to find a piece of home (really far) away from home. The ISS has seen a large variety of cuisines over the years, with an increasing number of international astronauts bringing diversity to the (makeshift) table.
Sunita Williams took samosas, Jeremy Hansen carried maple syrup, and Thomas Pesquet had macrons delivered to him at the ISS for his birthday. The Italian Space Agency and Lavazza built an espresso machine for an Italian astronaut, so that she could have the first proper espresso in space.
This wasn’t overkill, it’s a testament to the importance of humanising parts of an otherwise selfless job.
When you strip away the smell, texture, and warmth of a shared table, what you’re left with doesn’t feel like food. So, wherever possible, astronauts take food that reminds them of home, even if it is dehydrated, shelf-stable, and in colour-coded packets.
Source:
https://www.nasa.gov/history/space-station-20th-food-on-iss/
https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/167750main_fs_spacefood508c.pdf
