Latest news with #SureshPillai
Time of India
2 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
NASA-approved space menu now includes grilled chicken, chocolate pudding and tomato basil soup; thanks to this Indian-origin scientist
At a time when space travel is no longer limited to elite astronauts but increasingly includes private tourists and international collaborations, the need for high-quality, nutritious, and palatable food has become more pressing than ever. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Gone are the days of bland, utilitarian pouches filled with calorie-dense mush. In its place is a new generation of gourmet-style meals that not only prioritise nutrition and safety but also reflect the diverse culinary heritages of the astronauts themselves. At the heart of this evolution is Professor , an Indian-origin American food scientist whose team has helped transform 's culinary landscape. With the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), where is set to become the first Indian astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS), this gastronomic transformation is making headlines not just for its innovation, but for the cultural pride it brings to the mission. From DJ booth to NASA lab: Meet 'Suresh Pillai' the man behind the space menu Known by night as DJ Deep Spin Prof at a Texas nightclub, Suresh Pillai by day is a globally respected microbiologist and food safety expert. As reported by the Economic Times, born in Golden Rock, Tamil Nadu, and raised by parents from Thrissur, Kerala, Pillai's academic journey took him from Madras University to a PhD in microbiology and immunology at the University of Arizona. Today, at age 63, he is not just spinning records but revolutionizing the way we think about eating in space. His lab focuses on electron beam (eBeam) technology, a form of food sterilisation without heat, which he believes is critical to developing long-shelf-life meals for missions to Mars. NASA's secret ingredient: The Indian fish curry recipe that's out of this world According to the Economic Times report, in March 2024, a NASA technical paper revealed the detailed formulation of one of its most meticulously engineered space meals: Indian-style barramundi (sea bass) fish curry. With exact proportions listed down to the hundredths of a percent - frozen barramundi (51.1%), onions (19.05%), canned diced tomatoes (11.77%), and a blend of spices like cumin, turmeric, cayenne, and coriander, the dish represents the extraordinary level of precision required in space food engineering. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Far from being a marketing gimmick, this recipe is the product of years of scientific research and development at the Food Science and Technology Department at Texas A&M University, helmed by Professor Pillai. Since 2005, Pillai's lab has contributed about 30% of the food sent to the ISS, catering not just to nutritional needs but to emotional and psychological well-being. Making meals matter in microgravity According to NASA's guidelines, about 80% of the ISS food is standard menu fare. The remaining 20% is customized, based on personal taste preferences. For Shubhanshu Shukla, this means enjoying 'ghar ka khana' home-style Indian food, thanks to collaborative planning between NASA and ISRO's Human Space Flight Centre. Indian dishes being prepared for Shukla include moong dal halwa, mango nectar, and various rice dishes. The NASA-approved ISS menu also includes beef fajitas, cheese tortellini, carrot coins, grilled chicken, and desserts like chocolate pudding and cranapple delicacy. The space galley, complete with an oven and a water dispenser, ensures meals are reheated and hydrated properly in zero gravity. How NASA plans to keep astronauts fed for 1,000 days on Mars Creating space food that lasts up to five years is no longer science fiction. With NASA targeting Mars landings in the 2030s, the challenge is enormous: limited water, no refrigeration, and near-zero resupply capability. A round trip to Mars may take over three years, with astronauts potentially needing thousands of pre-packaged meals. Key hurdles include: Shelf stability for five years or more Minimising food fatigue (repetitive meals reducing appetite) Maintaining flavor and nutrition under extreme storage conditions Pillai's focus on eBeam sterilization could hold the key to achieving these goals. His students are now working to expand this technology for full-scale deployment in NASA's long-term mission planning. The Crew of Axiom Mission 4: A global table in orbit The Axiom Mission 4 was slated to launch on June 10, 2025, from the Kennedy Space Center marking a new era of private spaceflight. In addition to Shukla, the crew includes: Peggy Whitson, US astronaut and mission commander Sławosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, European Space Agency astronaut from Poland Tibor Kapu, spaceflight participant from Hungary As per reports, they will spend up to 14 days aboard the ISS, conducting scientific research and experiencing life in microgravity while enjoying some of the most advanced space meals ever developed.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
From chicken noodle soup to Indian fish curry, space menu gets upgrade as scientists spice up food for astronauts
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Additional spices and seasonings—cumin, sugar, cayenne pepper, cashews, turmeric, black pepper, coriander, and freeze-dried cilantro flakes— make up less than 1% of weight each, yet they are measured with precise, decimal-point accuracy. This meticulously crafted ingredients list for an Indian fish curry recipe isn't from the kitchens of celebrity one of the nearly five-dozen carefully engineered items on the menu developed for the astronauts of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). This culinary creation is documented by the US space agency in its technical paper from March the core of it is an Indian-origin American professor.'Early space missions focused mainly on safe and nutritional food. Palatability was never a priority,' says Suresh Pillai, professor, department of food science and technology, Texas A&M University (TAMU). Pillai heads the state-of-the-art food R&D laboratory that has been designing meals for NASA astronauts since 2005. Today, approximately 30% of the food sent to the International Space Station (ISS) is designed and developed by Pillai and his team at the university.'I can confidently say that Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will enjoy a far more palatable meal in space than Rakesh Sharma did over four decades ago,' says Pillai, though he clarifies that he's not privy to the exact menu planned for the upcoming Axiom Mission 4 (also called Ax-4) to the space station where Shukla is set to join as a the Commander's Cove bar in College Station, Texas, the nights come alive when a 63-year-old DJ—known to clubbers as Deep Spin Prof—takes control of the decks, unleashing a cocktail of electronic dance music, tech house, rap and as the sun rises, Deep Spin Prof morphs back into his other, more formal identity: Professor Suresh Pillai, a groundbreaking food in Golden Rock, Tamil Nadu, Pillai's roots trace back to Thrissur in Kerala, from where his parents hailed. With a bachelor's degree in botany and master's in industrial microbiology from Madras University, he ventured to US in 1986 to pursue a PhD in microbiology and immunology at the University of Arizona, 2005, Pillai has been at the forefront of developing safe and nutritious space cuisine. Between 2014 and 2018, he also lent his expertise to the US Food and Drug Administration's Science Advisory Board.'If you are paying so many dollars to be a space tourist, you wouldn't want to settle for just a pouch of food, would you?' asks Pillai. 'Can we develop the next generation of space meals—dishes that rival the finest first-class airline cuisine — while still prioritising safety and nutrition? After all, we have to make sure a space tourist doesn't end up with diarrhoea,' he the concept of space colonisation hitting a critical mass, it was only a matter of time the menu got an upgrade—chicken noodle soup, Indian fish curry, chocolate pudding and Pillai points out, now scientists have to think of not just seasoned astronauts but also future tourists and deep-space explorers bound for the Moon and Mars. Group Captain Shukla, an IAF fighter pilot deputed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for the Ax-4 mission — a private endeavour in collaboration with NASA — will become India's second astronaut to venture into space after Rakesh Sharma's historic 1984 flight. It is scheduled to launch on June 10 from the Kennedy Space Center in will be the first Indian astronaut to board the ISS, a football field-sized orbiting laboratory, has hosted over 260 astronauts from 21 countries since Expedition 1 docked on November 2, 2000, according to NASA's records as of May 2023. The station includes six sleeping quarters, two bathrooms, a gym and a 360-degree-view bay window for other three crew members of Ax-4 include Peggy Whitson, the American mission commander, Sławosz UznanskiWisniewski, a European Space Agency project astronaut from Poland, and Tibor Kapu from Hungary. The astronauts are slated to spend up to 14 days aboard the ISS, conducting a variety of scientific Indian, Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, has been designated as a backup crew member for the to Pillai, about 80% of the food in the ISS comes from a standard NASA-prepared menu, while the remaining 20% is tailored to each astronaut's personal preferences. In a press interaction last month, DK Singh, director of ISRO's Human Space Flight Centre, noted that Shukla 'will get ghar ka khana (home food)' and also have the option to choose from international cuisine, as approved by has prepared an assortment of rice dishes, moong dal halwa and mango nectar, among other treats, to ensure that the astronaut can take the taste of India with him. The NASA-approved menu at the ISS offers a wide variety of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. There are beef fajitas, grilled chicken, Indian fish curry and chicken with corn and black beans. There are also Italian green beans, brown rice, carrot coins, cheese tortellini with tomato sauce and curry sauce with dessert, astronauts can indulge in chocolate pudding, tropical fruit salad and cranapple delicacy. As for beverages, a fruit cocktail is among the options. NC Bhat, a former ISRO scientist who trained with NASA in 1985 for a space shuttle mission, fondly remembers selecting suji halwa as his preferred dish for the journey. 'We were taught how to sip tea and pour hot water in a zero-gravity environment,' he recalls with a chuckle over the Bhat and his colleague P Radhakrishnan were both shortlisted and trained for the flight, their dreams were dashed when NASA suspended its shuttle programme after the Challenger disaster in 1986, which claimed the lives of all seven astronauts on board.'At the Johnson Space Center in Houston, we learned the art of galley management, a skill still considered critical for astronauts,' Bhat galley — a modular unit comprising a water dispenser and an oven to heat precooked, thermostabilised meals—ensures that food stays in place rather than drift away mid-bite. Mastering galley management remains a very important part of astronaut training, ensuring that meal doesn't become a floating mess in a zero-gravity environment.'There's a lot to learn from traditional food cultures when designing sustainable and enjoyable meals for longduration space travel, especially to combat menu fatigue — a phenomenon where astronauts lose interest in repetitive meals, ' says Priyanka D Rajkakati, an Indian-origin French aerospace engineer who participated in a mock Moon mission on a Hawaiian island. Her 15-day confinement in 2020 was part of research efforts geared toward the human exploration of the Moon and, eventually, Mars. She recalls how the six-member crew, including three women, focused on various investigations that contributed to a deeper understanding of human adaptation and operational strategies for future space expeditions.'We quickly realised how crucial the interplay between food and daily rhythms was in the confined environment of the mission,' she explains, noting that the quality of meals significantly affected everyone's mood, health, energy and overall recalls how the crew discovered about halfway through the mission that powdered onion wasn't the best choice.'It might even have been making us sick, so we gave it a red code: NONIONS,' she space food researchers are grappling with a dual challenge: crafting gourmetquality meals for short-term space tourists while simultaneously developing foods that can endure the five-year shelf life needed for deep-space missions to Gaganyaan project envisions sending a crew of three astronauts into a lowEarth orbit of 400 km for a three-day mission, before safely splashing down in Indian waters. Even short-term missions like these face significant challenges, such as limited water and the difficulties of preparing meals in a zero-gravity the ISS, astronauts often spend months at a time in orbit, but they have never had to go hungry, thanks to regular resupply missions that deliver both packaged and fresh foods. Fresh fruits and vegetables, for instance, are typically enjoyed in the first few days after arrival. But the challenge of developing a food system for a Mars mission is far more complex.A single journey from Earth to Mars is expected to take seven to 10 months, making the round trip one and half years in transit alone. Factoring in an estimated 18-month stay on the Red Planet — and additional months or years for unforeseen delays — astronauts could require food provisions for about five the ISS, resupply missions to Mars won't be easy. What's more, adding refrigerators would significantly increase the spacecraft's mass, volume and power to NASA's current plans, the first woman will set foot on the Moon this decade, paving the way for humans to venture to Mars in the following says he's constantly consumed by a single challenge: how to develop space food that's safe, nutritious and palatable — no matter how many years it needs to last.'I am focusing on electron beam technology – eBeam —because that's the key to sterilising future space foods,' he says, adding that several of his PhD students are now diving deep into this research.
