Israeli Culinary Staple Couscous Makes the Mars Menu
A group of NASA ‘gastronauts’ have approved couscous, Nutella, and spam as friendly space fare
Israeli couscousA team of six researchers have spent the last four months dwelling in a small dome on an arid Hawaii lava field (the northern slope of Mauna Loa) to cook up a probable Mars menu for future astronauts, according to the Daily Mail.
Yesterday, they reappeared to share their knowledge gleaned from the $1 million NASA HI-SEAS (Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation) project.
Commissioned and financed by NASA’s Human Research Program, the University of Hawaii and Cornell University, the team was sent to conduct research about life and cookery for longterm space missions on the red planet.
The results?
Apparently team commander Angelo Vermeulen cited comfort food as a priority.
Lumped into the comfort category was couscous, a popular African, Middle Eastern, and Israeli dish (researchers were nearly running out of the ingredient), Nutella, and the non-perishable canned meat Spam.
Among the most coveted was the chocolate-hazelnut spread Nutella.
"It’s was something we craved," Vermeulen said. "We had a limited supply so we had to ration it."
According to NASA, extensive space missions, like the slated explorations to Mars in the 2030s, present the task of finding years-long food systems. These systems mandate a five-year shelf life and sufficient variety to remain interesting for the crews.
But will interesting comfort foods like couscous and Nutella even matter if astronauts lose their sense of taste in space anyway?
In a joint research project, Advanced Food Technology Project scientist at NASA, Michele Perchonok, and associate professor of biological and environmental engineering, Jean Hunter, will research why astronauts lose their sense of taste in space.
"We’ll get a better understanding of how much of sensory loss of flavour is due to the fluid shift and how much might be due to other pieces," said Perchonok.
An Israeli HMO's breastfeeding training videos have been watched by half a million Arab viewers and counting
Columbia University's Earth Institute survey has Israel up three spots from last year; Denmark, Nordic countries lead the list, while African countries remain at the bottom
AJL provides 'a cocktail of happiness and love' to Ethiopian orphans, relies on a team of Israeli volunteers to operate
Israel boasts longest life expectancy in Middle East and Africa; sixth favorite location for high-tech companies
A group of NASA ‘gastronauts’ have approved couscous, Nutella, and spam as friendly space fare
University of Haifa's Yaakov Zik and Giora Hon say Galileo had revolutionary theory of telescope optics that he never shared with anyone
An Israeli HMO's breastfeeding training videos have been watched by half a million Arab viewers and counting
Columbia University's Earth Institute survey has Israel up three spots from last year; Denmark, Nordic countries lead the list, while African countries remain at the bottom
AJL provides 'a cocktail of happiness and love' to Ethiopian orphans, relies on a team of Israeli volunteers to operate
Israel boasts longest life expectancy in Middle East and Africa; sixth favorite location for high-tech companies
A group of NASA ‘gastronauts’ have approved couscous, Nutella, and spam as friendly space fare
University of Haifa's Yaakov Zik and Giora Hon say Galileo had revolutionary theory of telescope optics that he never shared with anyone
The 19 year old sophomore sat on the exam table looking at the floor. A college student with obvious charm
In 1971, researchers set up a prison in the basement of Stanford University's Psychology Department. The idea was to
As I have tried to make abundantly clear the United States is the only country in the industrialized world that
Alright, that does it.Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Americans have been willing to do their part for
A study appeared in a journal titled “Obesity” which was reported by a group from the University of Colorado. In
Sixty-five years ago today, World War II officially came to an end. On September 2, 1945, Japanese Foreign Minister
Share This Story With Your Friends!
Friend's Name:
Friend's E-Mail:
(This information will not be displayed publicly)
Optional Message:
