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| Drunk Astronaut jk - image source: Jeremy Geddes |
I tried to look for some info about why feeding
astronauts is so hard; taste and smell just don’t act the same out there. It
seems like we still aren’t sure why this problem exists, though the menu has
made significant improvements since the days of liquid borscht balls floating
in microgravity.
I did, however, come across this interesting mention
about a time when astronauts requested an aperitif to celebrate their mission. Paul
Masson Rare Cream Sherry was purchased for a Skylab mission, one for the
spaceship, and one for testing prior. (Everything has to be tested.) Problem 1.
NASA was afraid that people – the public – wouldn’t be cool with drinking in
space. Problem 2. Smells move way faster in microgravity, and alcohol is very
volatile meaning it evaporates into the air faster. Because of all this it was
found to trigger the gag reflex. No drinking in space.
Shoot, let’s not forget, however, that there was this
time a distillery sent their whiskey into
orbit to see how it ferments differently.
Ross-Nazzal, Jennifer (7 April 2006). "Edited Oral
History Transcript - Charles T. Bourland". NASA Johnson Space Center Oral
History Project. link
Post Script
Speaking of smells and space:
Limbic Signal, 2017
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