What's a perfect 'space meal'? Mars-bound astronauts can now enjoy THIS 'tasty' food
means this food can also be grown in space, it added. "Now, researchers reporting in ACS Food Science and Technology have designed the optimal 'space meal': a tasty vegetarian salad. They chose fresh ingredients that meet male astronauts’ specialised nutritional needs and can be grown in space," the statement read.
The researchers plan to see in the future what their computer model dishes up as options for female astronauts and expand the variety of crops in their database. ALSO READ: NASA relaunches spacecraft to study 'God of Chaos' asteroid Apophis | Here's why The American Chemical Society noted that astronauts in space burn more calories than humans on Earth. They "require extra micronutrients, such as calcium, to stay healthy during extended exposure to microgravity," it added.
Moreover, astronauts are working towards food sustainability in space. Future long-term missions will require growing food in a sustainable, circular way within the spacecraft or space colonies. Also read: From Gaganyaan 1 to Mangalyaan-2, list of ISRO's space missions in 2024 "While researchers have explored methods of growing food in space and what nutrients astronauts require to stay healthy, specific fresh meals have not been developed," the statement said.
That's why, researchers wanted to "optimise a space meal that meets those unique requirements of spaceflight and tastes good". Researchers found that a vegetarian meal made up of soybeans, poppy seeds, barley, kale, peanuts, sweet potato and/or sunflower seeds provided the most efficient balance of maximal nutrients and minimal farming inputs. "While this combination couldn’t quite provide all the micronutrients an astronaut needs, those missing could be added in a supplement," the
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