Pie in the sky

Many products that rest in our kitchens today were developed using aerospace research.

It’s easy to link National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) with space exploration and programmes but one should look at the agency’s contribution to the diet that many of us consume in our day-to-day lives.

According to Spinoff, a NASA publication about the practical benefits of aerospace research, astronaut John Glenn drank an orange coloured, sweet powder in orbit in 1962. General Foods developed the drink later for popular use all over the world. Yes, Tang, which is a drink people all over the world continue to love, found its origins in NASA.

In fact, even enriched baby formula is NASA’s contribution. In the early 1980s, NASA conducted experiments with algae to gauge how it might be used on long space flights involving humans to provide food. Scientists realised the algae could provide nutritional supplements, including two fatty acids that were previously found only in human milk. More research was done at Martek Biosciences, a Columbia-based company that developed nutritional additives, and it’s thanks to the joint research at Martek Biosciences and NASA that baby formula food segment continued to evolve in the 80s.

NASA, for its spacemen, was also developing energy drinks to help them stay hydrated for longer durations. The main idea of the drink, according to Spinoff, was to “create electrolyte blend that increases plasma volume”. That’s the reason why companies developed energy drinks, which are a hit with sportspersons all over the world.

Even freeze-dried and other dried food products that rest in your refrigerators and freezers were born through research done at NASA. Back in the 60s, astronauts ate bite-sized cubes, dried powders and semi-liquid food which was stuffed in aluminum tubes and was largely unappetising. But scientists continued to work on providing good food on spaceships and later the menus — with improved packaging that helped the food to last longer — included shrimp cocktail, chicken, veggies, puddings and even apple sauce!

Although NASA didn’t invent the process of freeze-drying food, the agency worked on ways to preserve foods and their nutrients. NASA scientists add that the agency has constantly worked towards enhancing freeze-dried food.

So several everyday products that we use were developed or modified using aerospace research.

Now, that’s NASA for you.