Fun Facts - Science And Foods In Space

At zero gravity (space conditions) the body demineralises, resulting in bone and muscle loss. For astronauts this happens fast, as much as 1 per cent a month, compared to on Earth where bone loss occurs when we grow old. Between 50 and 60 years of age we experience 10 per cent of bone loss.

A few innovative food manufacturers have come up with unique formulations for food products that can stand up to harsh conditions in space, yet still taste at least marginally good. Here are just a few of the latest.

Nissin Food Products announced that its newly developed instant noodle product Space Ram was loaded on the space shuttle Discovery and went into space last month. Space Ram – available in soy sauce, miso, curry and pork bones - was co-developed with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The soup powder has been made with increased viscosity and can be cooked in water at 70 degrees Celsius.

Danish food firm Arla Food Ingredients, working with US food technologists at the Johnson Space Centre, recently developed a new yoghurt for consumption by NASA's astronauts. When the expedition 11 crew took off to the International Space Station in mid-April, Arla's fruit flavoured yoghurts were on board.

Arla Food Ingredients has also come up with ‘milk bites' for astronauts which are essentially a chewy, bite-size protein bar that gives the space travellers a dose of calcium and protein.

A NASA space food competition held in spring of 2004 resulted in a vegetable spread called Veg@eez, a red, white and green mix of tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes and radishes, as the winning entry. It was created by U.S. students from Penn State University who won the year's NASA Food Technology Commercial Space Center competition.

Astronauts' tastes in food changes when they are in space. In space the zero gravity means that bodily fluids move up towards the head. It's like having a stuffed nose. People's perception of food changes, and most astronauts tend to go for spicy foods in space.

In July 2001 it was reported that the European Space Agency started building a recycling system that will convert astronauts' waste into food, oxygen and water.

The Micro-Ecological Life Support Alternative (MELISSA) system could enable future astronauts to travel to Mars and back, an epic voyage that would take three years to complete. It could also be a vital feature of space bases on other planets.

The miniature ecosystem will be divided into five interconnected compartments. The first three are being constructed at universities across Europe and are designed to break down waste through a number of fermentation processes.

The fourth, being built at the University of Guelph, will contain plants and algae that grow to produce oxygen, water and food, fed by the decomposed waste. The fifth compartment will contain the astronauts themselves and will be constructed at the project headquarters in Barcelona, Spain.

During the development of the system, rats will be used in place of astronauts to test the system. ESA says that the complete facility will be assembled in Barcelona by 2005.

Recycling is already an important part of space travel. Systems used aboard Mir and the International Space Station allow astronauts to breath air converted from carbon dioxide and drink water purified from waste. The new system performs the more complicated task of recycling food.

The next step in food science? It may be "Micro-M.R.E.'s," meal tablets with enough calories to sustain a soldier in the battlefield for 24 hours. According to Air Force 2025, a study of future military concepts conducted by the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base, M.R.E.'s are being developed.

Also in the works: transdermal patches that will allow soldiers to feed themselves through their skin. The "transdermal nutrient delivery system" is currently being studied by the Department of Defense Combat Feeding Program.


Sources:
NewScientist - Space toilet key to conquering final frontier
ABC News/Australia - New food for happy little astronauts
FoodQualityNews - Soup rockets to space on new formulation
RetroFuture - Spacefood