FAST FOOD



 Scientists didn't know how weightlessness might affect swallowing food while in space before John Glenn orbited in 1962.  Without Earth's gravity, perhaps food wouldn't move downward in the body. Fortunately, this turned out not to be a problem. But early astronauts were still limited to "safe" foods: bite size chunks, freeze dried foods, and gloppy semisolid food stuffed into toothpaste-like tubes. 

Over time, foods and menus improved. Today's shuttle astronauts choose their own menus well before flight time. There's a water dispenser and an oven aboard the craft. All food is ready to eat, or precooked, or made edible by adding water and heating it just like food you might use on an overnight campout. Stowed food must weigh as little as possible to avoid unnecessary weight on the craft during lift off and flight time. A ready to eat meal can be prepared in five minutes; one that requires adding water and heating takes about 30 minutes. Astronauts eat from trays, simiilar to TV dinner trays.