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Astronaut Has 'Wasabi Spill' in Space
Sda~ writes "You learn something new everyday: There is nothing in the astronaut training manual about how to clean up flying wasabi. An inadvertent Wasabi spill this week aboard the ISS has made space agencies re-evaluate including the spicy paste in future meals. The astronauts are allowed some of their favorite foods on each trip, to alleviate homesickness. 'Williams, whose father was born in India, has several Indian dishes in her bonus container, including Punjabi kadhi with pakora - vegetable fritters topped with yogurt and curry - and mutter paneer, a curry dish. The dishes are packaged to have a long shelf life in space. Her U.S. crew mate, astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria, is an even bigger foodie. Lopez-Alegria, who was born in Madrid but grew up in California, had Spanish muffins known as magdalenas, chorizo pork sausage and latte in his bonus container.'"
They already have fans and filters, but it won't help if the wasabi is already sticking to something like a wall, some equipment, or a person. Cleaning up is an issue because water and cleaning materials are in short supply.
It would be interesting to calculate the internal surface are of the ISS down to a reasonable scale. It must be several square kilometers, at least.
http://michaelsmith.id.au
I have advised the folks who work on analyzing the air in the ISS. I talked to an astronaut about things that concerned them getting into the air. She said Tabasco sauce was one concern. With zero gravity a drop could float around and accidently be inhaled or get into your eye. Eventually the air filtration system will capture it. One of the effects of zero g on the human body is the redistribution of fluids which causes a loss of taste. This is why the astronauts like to add spicyness to their foods.
FYI Most space wasabi is actually horseradish.
The description in the summary did have me wondering. Wasabi is not really a "paste", and the real Japanese condiment does not exhibit the properties of a liquid. It's more like the consistency of slightly damp clay powder. It would almost seem like the perfect condiment to take into space because it's not liquid enough to spill, nor is it solid or powdery enough for the granules to get into anything (like, say, salt would).
But if it's really just colored horseradish, that would explain things. Horseradish doesn't need to be a liquid either but it typically is when packaged as a condiment.
I guess my point is, it sounds like the solution to this problem is for NASA to upgrade the quality of their wasabi!