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Space Coffee, Just the Way You Like It

Posted by samzenpus on from the good-to-the-last-floating-drop dept.

Zothecula writes "Since the early days of space travel, a consistent complaint has been lousy coffee. Now a group of freshman engineering students at Rice University have developed a simple approach to alleviating this problem. From the article: 'The challenge was to develop a method and equipment that allows astronauts to add liquid ingredients (cream, sweetener, and lemon juice) from a foil package to another that contains black coffee or tea. No spills in microgravity can be allowed, as these have a tendency to migrate into equipment and cause faults. The Rice freshmen designed their system around the existing black coffee pouches. NASA supplied them two-ply heat sealed pouches to hold the sugar syrup and cream. The beverage and condiment pouches all have a septum which allows access to their contents without allowing any of the liquid contents to escape.'"

147 comments

  1. I think I can spot the problem... by madmarcel · · Score: 5, Funny

    You put the Americans in charge of coffee?? I think I can spot the problem...

    1. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      So, can I, you're racist.

    2. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Putting Americans in charge of coffee? That's like putting the English in charge of tea.

    3. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So, can I, you're racist.

      And if "american" was a race, you might have a point.

    4. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      And here, kids, we have a perfect example for the use of the term 'non sequitur'.

    5. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Not really. While English culture is strongly associated with tea, the stuff people usually drink is actually quite vile. Shockingly so, if like me you are a tea-loving German who moved to the UK.

      Which undoubtedly is also the case with most of the coffee consumed in the states - if you actually genuinely love a good coffee.

    6. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So, can I, you're a xenophobe.

      TIFTFY

    7. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      umm does that mean we should put the merkins in charge of beer in space after all they used to drinking recycled piss.

    8. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So American is a race now? I think maybe you've confused racism with anything-you-don't-like.

    9. Re:I think I can spot the problem... by [000000] · · Score: 1

      Hey don't Bring us Brits into the mix. Fight your own war.

  2. The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Colonies built on the moon: 0
    Hours spent designing perfect zero-g latte: 1000+
    Human race == fucked

    1. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by multiben · · Score: 3, Funny

      I hope you're not a programmer.

    2. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope you're not a barista.

    3. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Runaway1956 · · Score: 2

      You do realize that a colony on the moon would NOT be in a zero-g environment? The moon has a micro-gravity, which will cause spilled liquids to fall to the floor, where they can be mopped up, much as we mop up spills on earth.

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
    4. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I think that was his point. These precious zero-g lattes will be WASTED on our non-existent moon colonies.

    5. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by pen · · Score: 2

      Problem is, you can't build a moon colony without perfecting space coffee first.

    6. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope you're not a barrister.

    7. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ask Kerbal Space Program!

    8. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope you're not a Lannister.

    9. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by somersault · · Score: 3, Informative

      The point he was trying to make is that NASA are misdrecting their resources. Not that this coffee is meant for the moon.

      --
      which is totally what she said
    10. Re:The Russians used a pencil! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The moon has a micro-gravity

      No. The ISS has microgravity. The moon has quite massive gravity, on its surface it's 1/6 of the gravity on the earth's surface.

  3. I like it Black, damnit! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What if they only drink black coffee? All that extra creamer and sugar....prescious grams of take-off weight gone wasted

    1. Re:I like it Black, damnit! by kwark · · Score: 1

      You like it black? Like your men?
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tYLb3teB14

      Now the only problem would be to fix that dangerous vacuum in space:
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71ukAH6Ny80

    2. Re:I like it Black, damnit! by davester666 · · Score: 1

      Quick, to the oxygen pumps!

      We'll pump our atmosphere into space until it's not a vacuum anymore.

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
  4. Customize? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Given the expense of shipping people and supplies into orbit, and the fact that the people you are going to be shipping are generally known in advance, wouldn't it be substantially simpler just to ask them for their preferred beverage mixture and seal that in a single pouch?

    This isn't some sort of commercial aviation scenario, where the catering supplier has to do an approximate match against the uncertain tastes of 250 random passengers, which makes modular food much more sensible; or an MRE-type scenario where they have to stamp out a zillion of them and ship them wherever, so it just isn't practical to ensure that Pvt. SomeGuy gets exactly the combination he wants assembled at the factory and supply-chained out to him at firebase nowhere 18 months from now...

    1. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      But but your method deprives some 18 yr olds from feeling like they just solved the world's most important problem.

    2. Re:Customize? by gTsiros · · Score: 2

      on the other hand, i can't imagine astronauts being so picky with their coffee. Or if drinking is a good idea, being an astronaut.

      maybe my mind is still 50 years back.

      --
      Looking for people to chat about multicopters, coding, music. skype: gtsiros
    3. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The coffee in space would have to be pretty damn bad for it to be improved by reheating pre-brewed, pre-sweetened coffee that's been stored in a pouch for months on end.

    4. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So am I to understand that condiments, like sweetener and creamer, will be rocketed into space with the possibility of not being used? Is space-junk unused ketchup packets? Are astronauts searching for A1 and mayo too? No, really, why isn't this pre-mixed? We're talking about rocket scientists here.

    5. Re:Customize? by Demonantis · · Score: 1

      It is kind of a contrived situation, but its a decent system and there are probably more uses for it beyond this. Specifically with lab work.

    6. Re:Customize? by Shadow+of+Eternity · · Score: 2

      You're forgetting that this system will work for more than just coffee.

      --
      A bullet may have your name on it but splash damage is addressed "To whom it may concern."
    7. Re:Customize? by macraig · · Score: 1

      I'm not even a rare-occasion coffee drinker so I'm hardly an expert on the chemistry, but might this be a situation similar to, say, two-part epoxy materials, where the desired result occurs at the time two compounds are mixed and doing that mixing prematurely leads to unacceptable consequences? Would coffee taste quite right if the additives were added weeks or months in advance of consumption?

      If the astronaut pool were large enough, it might be more cost effective to simply weed out those that had inconvenient food (or other) preferences.

    8. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Astronaut school: no smokers or coffee addicts allowed.

    9. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Given the expense of shipping people and supplies into orbit, and the fact that the people you are going to be shipping are generally known in advance, wouldn't it be substantially simpler just to ask them for their preferred beverage mixture and seal that in a single pouch?

      That's not what I was thinking. I was thinking, wouldn't it be substantially simpler just to ask them to tough it out for a while and drink black coffee? I've done deep field work and yes, it sucks, being without the comforts of home, but a few sacrifices need to be made. This one seems pretty darn tiny.

    10. Re:Customize? by TheCarp · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Or maybe you just have silly stereotypes about astronauts, and likely coffee.

      So you think astronauts are not driven people who would gladly sacrifice their own body and long term health for the sake of the mission and being an astronaut? Do you really think coffee is that bad? I have worked in a major hospital and let me tell you....lots of Doctors and Nurses in that coffee line.

      --
      "I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
    11. Re:Customize? by angiasaa · · Score: 2

      Well, I for one have tastes that change from day to day. Almost every time I make my coffee (which is about 6 to 8 times a day), I change something around. It's not that I absolutely MUST have variations in my coffee. But there's little joy in having the same stuff over long periods of time.

      But you do have a very valid point. They're on duty 24/7 in the ISS, and they knew what they were getting into well in advance. A rough blend in their preferred proportions would be a much better idea.

      --
      Geekism is your _only_ God!
    12. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think it would be simpler to get them something like those multi-button drink guns like bars use. This way you could easily add other things to meals, like ketchup. Would cost a lot more weight on the initial send up, but I think it would be simpler/easier/quicker for the astronauts to deal with on a day-to-day basis. You still only have one hose for the water, but you have a couple of "option" pouches held behind the gun and pressing the different buttons sucks product out of a specific pouch at a known rate using the venturi principle. Of course you would need something like a flap and rubber bands to keep tension on the pouches. Replacing an empty option pouches (or adding a new one like, say Tabasco) would involve releasing the tension on the pouch, pull it out, put a new one in, replace the tension. I can see it in my mind though I know I'm not describing it well.

    13. Re:Customize? by confused+one · · Score: 1

      Yes, because I'm sure that astronauts want the exact same beverage mix every time, for three to six months straight.

    14. Re:Customize? by nschubach · · Score: 1

      I'm totally opposite. I tend to find a flavor and have no problem eating the same thing day in and day out. When I drink coffee, I prefer it black and without variations of sugar or cream.

      --
      Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
    15. Re:Customize? by nschubach · · Score: 1

      I generally drink the same concoction of syrup and carbonated water... been doing it for years. Usually out of a red and white aluminum can. Other than that, water, milk or black coffee. I assume they have more than just coffee available so I don't see why they can't pick a combination of sugars and cream for their coffee. I guess that's just me from the other posts here.

      --
      Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
    16. Re:Customize? by Runaway1956 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Bingo!

      Everyone seems to be hung up on coffee, as though that were the ONLY liquid that might ever need to be mixed with another ingredient in zero gravity.

      Hello, everyone! The same methods used to add cream to coffee will likely work in scientific experiments, or mixing epoxy cements, or, preparing an acid solution, or - just about anything that requires two ingredients to be mixed.

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
    17. Re:Customize? by Dereck1701 · · Score: 1

      As others have mentioned there are other applications for this method, but sticking to the Coffee demonstration premixing foods for consumption in space is a bit tricky. Things don't taste quite the same in zero G as they do in a gravity environment for most astronauts. While the basic parameters are fairly well know (less sugar than normal, more spices than normal, etc) tweaking it for individual tastes could be difficult. I believe the aspects of this also change depending on how long the astronaut is in orbit, the longer they are in zero g the closer their tastes return to more of an earth normal.

    18. Re:Customize? by multiben · · Score: 1

      Feeling a bit jealous?

    19. Re:Customize? by twistofsin · · Score: 1

      I had the same thought. I'm sure they pay out of the nose for these package, why not insist they be customized to the preferences of the astronauts going on the trip?

      A good rule of them for going into a dangerous environment is to get as much shit done as you can outside of it. If things are so strange up there that it's best to precook all your food I think premixing your flavored beverages is worth the effort to.

    20. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I drink pre-brewed, pre-sweetened, coffee that's been stored in a can for months on end. It's not bad at all. Oh, you drink it cold though, not reheated.

    21. Re:Customize? by Drakonblayde · · Score: 1

      You're assuming space travel will never be commercialized.

    22. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What makes you think that most doctors and nurses are healthy?

    23. Re:Customize? by TheCarp · · Score: 2

      Well you don't see a lot of them hanging around the smoking zone outside the hospital sucking down butts like the old nurses. Course I was out to diner with a number of doctors when one of them pointed at the fois gras one of them ordered and said "This is what your liver looks like after a good drinking binge" and the entire table shut up and looked shamefully down at their navels.... so yah they aren't that healthy.

      --
      "I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
    24. Re:Customize? by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      You're assuming space travel will never be commercialized.

      That's because he's not a rabidly insane optimist/delusionist.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    25. Re:Customize? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The goal was "not black", but it can be raised to "pretentious connoisseur" later. We'll even spring for a light-up apple logo.

    26. Re:Customize? by nullchar · · Score: 1

      I hope you're only making coffee 6-8 times a day for yourself and not "experimenting" with the break room coffee.

      And if you are making it only for yourself... that might be too much caffeine. How do you sleep at night?

    27. Re:Customize? by angiasaa · · Score: 1

      Yes, yes, for myself. :) Though this is when I'm not at work. The coffee at work is not what I'd call awesome, but it's not so bad that I don't touch the stuff.
      I make my own coffee when I'm at home, so I was not counting the coffee at work, which is about 4 cups on a good day.. many more on a bad one.

      My caffeine intake is through the roof, but it soothes my nerves. I've suffered from insomnia since I was 14, and it was a really bad experience till I started having coffee when I was about 19 (Till then, it was just tea) and for some reason, I can now actually sleep for at least four to six hours every day.

      My sleep specialist does not know why Caffeine doesn't always (sometimes it does actually keep me awake!) work on me the way it does for most others, so I have to visit him every couple of months for tests. But all in all, I think life's good as long as I feel I'm enjoying it better this way.

      --
      Geekism is your _only_ God!
  5. space coffee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Starbucks that even Starbuck would like?

    1. Re:space coffee by ackthpt · · Score: 2

      Starbucks that even Starbuck would like?

      Starbucks are probably kicking thenselves for not thinking of this first.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    2. Re:space coffee by camperdave · · Score: 1

      Starbuck drinks ambrosia, and he likes it aged a hundred yahren or more.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    3. Re:Space Coffee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I can run down to the space store to get more space cream...

  6. just educate the astronauts by loufoque · · Score: 0

    Coffee is better black and strong, without any additional ingredient.
    Otherwise it's not coffee, it's just sweetened water.

    1. Re:just educate the astronauts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just like your women eh?

    2. Re:just educate the astronauts by rmdingler · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Agreed. In fact, the only difference between good coffee and bad coffee is about two hours first thing in the morning.

      --
      Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.

      Ernest Hemingway

    3. Re:just educate the astronauts by dugancent · · Score: 1

      Coffee is better black and strong, without any additional ingredient.
      Otherwise it's not coffee, it's just sweetened water.

      Coffee in any form is disgusting. 34 years and still can't stand it.

      --
      SJWs are the new boogeyman. -Me
    4. Re:just educate the astronauts by Hatta · · Score: 1

      Yes, if you like coffee drink it black so you can taste the coffee. If you don't like coffee why drink it at all? Adding milk and sugar to coffee just covers up the flavors of bad coffee. If you really want astronauts to drink good coffee, you need to figure out how to grind coffee beans in zero G, steep and filter them.

      --
      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
    5. Re:just educate the astronauts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'll drink coffee however the fuck I want to. Humans discovered a long time ago that combining different ingredients makes things taste different.. and taste is subjective. Some people just don't like it black, some do.

    6. Re:just educate the astronauts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      Yes exactly! I've been arguing this for years. And it's not just coffee either. Every food should be eaten either in it's pure unmixed form, or not at all. Salt and ketchup on your fries? Guess you don't really like fries. Lemon aid? Why bother with the sugar, just drink lemon juice. Think you like salad? Not if you put dressing on it.

    7. Re:just educate the astronauts by nschubach · · Score: 1

      I imagine grinding wouldn't be terribly hard. You couldn't use a gravity press, but pushing the beans against a grinder isn't all that difficult. Steeping can be handled with something like a French Press I would assume and filtering would be included in the press.

      --
      Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
    8. Re:just educate the astronauts by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      I'll drink coffee however the fuck I want to. Humans discovered a long time ago that combining different ingredients makes things taste different.. and taste is subjective. Some people just don't like it black, some do.

      Some people never develop beyond childish tastes, you are absolutely right. Just keep out of the grownups' room if you can't handle black coffee, cigars and whisky, junior.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    9. Re:just educate the astronauts by CannonballHead · · Score: 1

      If you like chocolate, eat it without sugar or milk. You need to taste the cocoa. Eat it raw or go home.

      If you like vanilla, eat the bean straight; using it to *flavor* something else is stupid.

      I like coffee. I like it with cream and sugar. I like the flavor of coffee. Yes, it does have a flavor; I don't like drinking cream and sugar alone. In fact, I like the coffee to be brewed very strongly so that when I add the cream and sugar to adjust the flavor, I still get a strong coffee flavor.

      I can stand it black, but I don't like it. I taste it black, sometimes, to taste what different coffee preparations/beans/roasts taste like... but I prefer my coffee with cream and sugar.

    10. Re:just educate the astronauts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Never said I didn't like black coffee, I just don't need you to tell me if it's proper or not.

  7. Let's see them do a Tea Ceremony in space by ackthpt · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Something I got a kick out of was when Michael Stackpole wrote out an elaborate Japanese Tea Ceremony in Zero-G in one of his BattleTech novels. He didn't have to, but it was great reading.

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
  8. septum? by one_who_uses_unix · · Score: 2

    Am I the only one that is decidedly uncomfortable with drinking from anything with a septum?

    --
    KK4SFV
    1. Re:septum? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I don't think you will ever have to use this invention, so don't worry about it.

      However, just in case you're a millionaire that's planning to pay for a ride on the ISS: septum is just a fancy word for partition.

    2. Re:septum? by CannonballHead · · Score: 1

      The only thing I can think of is The Elder Scrolls' currency, hehe.

  9. Lemon juice by Longjmp · · Score: 1

    a consistent complaint has been lousy coffee. [...] allows astronauts to add liquid ingredients (cream, sweetener, and lemon juice)

    I almost choked reading up to this point... I recovered a little bit when I read further ;)

    --
    There are fewer illiterates than people who can't read.
    1. Re:Lemon juice by kwark · · Score: 1

      Read further:
      "to add liquid ingredients (cream, sweetener, and lemon juice) from a foil package to another that contains black coffee or tea."
      The lemon part is for the tea. Just like you don't add cream to tea, lemon to coffee makes no sense.

      Before my coffee addiction I used to add lemon to tea, it appears to be something eastern european.

    2. Re:Lemon juice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I almost choked reading up to this point...

      Once upon a time, I was making some coffee and I wanted it to have an edge and some sweetness. I mixed milk and lemon juice into the cup, stirred and took a big gulp. Nearly died choking. The acidity of the lemon juice curdled the milk, and it tasted like hot vomit. Never mix (real) dairy with acidic stuff like lemon juice.

      On the bright side, if I ever need to make someone else lose a dare I'll know what to give them to drink.

    3. Re:Lemon juice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      you like espresso? i make it back there myself with a little lemon twist, it's good!

    4. Re:Lemon juice by Cito · · Score: 1

      in London we like a spot of milk in our tea.

    5. Re:Lemon juice by Longjmp · · Score: 1

      Read further:
      "to add liquid ingredients (cream, sweetener, and lemon juice) from a foil package to another that contains black coffee or tea."

      Why was that fuss about the blink tag? Sometimes you seem to need it:

      I recovered a little bit when I read further ;)

      No offense :)

      --
      There are fewer illiterates than people who can't read.
    6. Re:Lemon juice by Longjmp · · Score: 1

      On the bright side, if I ever need to make someone else lose a dare I'll know what to give them to drink.

      Try coffee with a spoon of salt instead of sugar (i.e. give them a "sugar bowl" filled with salt)

      Just be sure to film their faces :D

      --
      There are fewer illiterates than people who can't read.
    7. Re:Lemon juice by kwark · · Score: 1

      Apparently I didn't read that far into you post.

    8. Re:Lemon juice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So suddenly it makes sense? Just because some people on a island do it?

    9. Re:Lemon juice by SternisheFan · · Score: 1

      ...The acidity of the lemon juice curdled the milk, and it tasted like hot vomit. ...

      Dear diary, was reading Slashdot comments today. Guess what I learned never to do...

    10. Re:Lemon juice by camperdave · · Score: 1

      Milk != Cream

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    11. Re:Lemon juice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It depends on the tea.

    12. Re:Lemon juice by radish · · Score: 1

      Never mix (real) dairy with acidic stuff like lemon juice

      Unless you want buttermilk, because that's what you just made. But keep buttermilk in the pancakes, not the coffee :)

      --

      ---- Den ene knappen er powerknapp, den andre er Bender voice knapp "Bite My Shiny Metal Ass"

    13. Re:Lemon juice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's only true with US cream. Here in the UK if you add a little bit of lemon juice to double* cream you get sour cream (yes, the thick, gloppy kind), and if you add a lot of sugar and lemon juice to double cream you get lemon posset (pudding dessert that tastes like what you'd get if you mixed the flavors of cream and lemon meingue pie filling). Mmm. Posset.

      (*for US viewers, double cream has a little more butterfat than heavy whipping cream)

    14. Re:Lemon juice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You jest, but coffee with a pinch of salt isn't all that bad

      (Very) small amounts of salt are known to bring out certain flavors and aromas, and, with coffee, it can cut the bitterness a bit to let some of the other flavor out.

  10. Lemon Juice? by BlackusDiamondus · · Score: 0

    Am I the only one that finds the concept of lemon juice in coffee disturbing? I have never even heard of anyone doing that before - it's that bizarre!

    --
    Shit happens and it's usually caused by assholes
    1. Re:Lemon Juice? by Tarlus · · Score: 1

      In Rodney Dangerfield's voice:
      I've heard of coffee with a citrus overtone, but this is ridiculous!

      --
      /* No Comment */
  11. Bad for you ... don't eat. by mspohr · · Score: 0

    Sugar and cream are bad for you and ruin the taste of coffee.
    I don't know what to say about lemon juice since it sounds terrible in coffee.

    --
    I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
    1. Re:Bad for you ... don't eat. by Tarlus · · Score: 1

      No true astronaut puts sugar in his coffee.

      --
      /* No Comment */
    2. Re:Bad for you ... don't eat. by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      Sugar and cream are bad for you and ruin the taste of coffee. I don't know what to say about lemon juice since it sounds terrible in coffee.

      Dude, coffee is bad for you too.

      And as someone says above, you often get a twist of lemon with an espresso. .

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  12. missing the point by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Now if only someone can figure out a method that allows astronauts to sip the coffee from an oversized mug, as God intended, they will really have accomplished something.

    1. Re:missing the point by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      Now if only someone can figure out a method that allows astronauts to sip the coffee from an oversized mug, as God intended, they will really have accomplished something.

      Most astronauts aren't little girls trying to look cute.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  13. Another Solution by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I've got another solution that's long over due. How about...

    Baristas...
        In...
            Space!

  14. Someone should tell Chris Hadfield by dwywit · · Score: 4, Informative

    "No spills in microgravity can be allowed, as these have a tendency to migrate into equipment and cause faults. "

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMtXfwk7PXg

    --
    They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom
    1. Re:Someone should tell Chris Hadfield by GigaplexNZ · · Score: 1

      I came to say exactly this. Seems you beat me to it.

    2. Re:Someone should tell Chris Hadfield by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "No spills in microgravity can be allowed, as these have a tendency to migrate into equipment and cause faults. "

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMtXfwk7PXg

      Most military grade electronics have conformal coatings on them so unless they are immersed in water a little moisture 'should' not damage it.

  15. what about black? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So was the only prior complaint that coffee could only be taken black, without cream and sugar? Or is the method used to produce coffee in microgravity somehow inferior to Earth-bound methods?

    Perfecting the method of adding cream and sugar has nothing to do with the quality of the coffee in question - cream and sugar are for people who don't appreciate a good coffee in the first place. This is like claiming to "fix" wine because you've figured out a new way to make sangria.

  16. New franchise locations? by ihtpsswrds · · Score: 1

    And this research was funded by a generous grant from Starbucks? Spaceports in zero-g with a kiosk for my triple venti mocha while I wait for the flight to Mars. Now on to the baking dilemma.

  17. Space Coffee by Tarlus · · Score: 1

    Just the thing to pour into my space mug and drink with my space breakfast while I read my space newspaper.

    --
    /* No Comment */
  18. Space pen by quarterbuck · · Score: 1

    Meanwhile the Russians used instant coffee .
    (Saying this as an owner of a fisher space pen).

    --
    http://slashdot.org/submission/1062723/Cheap-mobile-data-plan?art_pos=2
    1. Re:Space pen by skine · · Score: 1

      I know that you're just making a joke, but it irks me when people laugh at the US for spending millions of dollars developing a pen that can be used in space.

      The real story being that Paul Fisher (owner of Fisher) invented the pen on his own, then sold it to both the US and Russian space programs. Both programs preferred the pens to the risk of broken pencils or pencil shavings floating into crucial equipment.

  19. The problem isn't lousy coffee? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Good coffee doesn't need cream, milk or sugar... if the coffee is good after this and the coffee is unchanged - the coffee was already good.

  20. Proper cup of coffee... by Sooner+Boomer · · Score: 1

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-ia13f72-4

    --
    Chaos maximizes locally around me.
  21. Re:Lemon Juice? WTF? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I suspect the lemon is for the tea.

  22. Re:Lemon Juice? WTF? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Did you even bother to finish reading the whole sentence in the freakin' summary before posting this?

  23. Black Coffee by Ricyteach · · Score: 1

    Or they could just man up and drink it black the way God intended.

    1. Re:Black Coffee by confused+one · · Score: 1

      So... eating the roasted beans then?

    2. Re:Black Coffee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So... eating the roasted beans then?

      Why roast them?

    3. Re:Black Coffee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As long as it's a nice medium roast coated in milk chocolate, yes!

    4. Re:Black Coffee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Milk chocolate, you say? Hell no! 100% cacao, my friend—the way Yahweh intended.

  24. No one thought of this before? by darkfeline · · Score: 1

    Seriously? I know they say, everything seems obvious in hindsight, but they really couldn't figure out squeezing sugar and creamer from one pouch into another coffe pouch? These guys design space ships? Am I the only one who sees something wrong here?

    1. Re:No one thought of this before? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Maybe they all like coffee or don't drink it. If you're adding cream and sugar to it, it's not coffee you like, it's coffee milk.

    2. Re:No one thought of this before? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I don't understand this widespread sentiment that if you put anything in coffee it is no longer coffee. It certainly is still coffee, the same as a salad is still a salad even if you put dressing on it.

    3. Re:No one thought of this before? by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      current astronauts are pussies, the ones of yore just drank the motor oil given to them and didnt whine about it

      its 2013 we have to have fucking starbucks provided to the government or else the fembots get offended

    4. Re:No one thought of this before? by tehcyder · · Score: 1
      Here are a few things you are allowed to add to coffee:

      Whisky. Brandy
      That's it.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  25. Simple approach to alleviating this problem by ArcadeMan · · Score: 1

    Stop drinking coffee!

    --
    Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
    1. Re:Simple approach to alleviating this problem by El_Oscuro · · Score: 1

      Drink beer instead!

      --
      "Be grateful for what you have. You may never know when you may lose it."
    2. Re:Simple approach to alleviating this problem by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, stop hiring astronauts that demand sugar & cream!

  26. OK, here's my invention by Rob_Bryerton · · Score: 1

    Here's my solution (This being /., I did not read the article. I stopped reading after the problem was described so I could solve it)

    3-chamber bag created w/that silvery plastic foil material, chambers created by a heat seal. Larger top compartment has black coffee (and pie-hole nozzle) and at the bottom, 2 small compartments side-by-side hold cream & sweetener. The top of each of the lower 2 chambers has a simple pressure-activated valve into the coffee chamber. You squeeze these to add desired amounts of cream and sugar to the coffee.

    Where's my honorary engineering degree?

    1. Re:OK, here's my invention by sethradio · · Score: 1

      Hey! I thought of the same thing!

      --
      "Nationalism is an infantile sickness. It is the measles of the human race." -Albert Einstein
    2. Re:OK, here's my invention by rpstrong · · Score: 1

      The problem is weight. The coffee, creamer, and sweetener are all powdered, and weigh a fraction of their liquid versions. (Water on the space station is recycled, so you don't need to send additional water with every coffee pouch). Your three-way pouch would need additional ports for injecting water into the two extra compartments (the main coffee pouch, of course, already has a port). Also, the remaining sweetener or creamer isn't readily available - with the technique described above, the additives are saved for the next cup (pouch, that is.)

      Not that it matters to me - I take it black with a lemon twist for espresso. And adding lemon juice powder wouldn't be the same - the twist adds oil, not juice.

  27. Eh... by sunking2 · · Score: 1

    Drinking from a pouch is going to taste like crap regardless if it has no way for the aroma to escape. And there's something about holding a nice warm mug that makes it the morning comfort beverage.

    1. Re:Eh... by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      Drinking from a pouch is going to taste like crap regardless if it has no way for the aroma to escape. And there's something about holding a nice warm mug that makes it the morning comfort beverage.

      I prefer a pair of boobs, but each to his own.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  28. If I had mod points... by TKane · · Score: 1

    I'd mod every other +5 response in this entire thread (other than "funny" ones) "over rated".

  29. How to get coffee in space by Burpmaster · · Score: 1

    There's coffee in that nebula!

  30. Meanwhile... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...the Russians just took caffeine pills.

  31. Preference by ignavus · · Score: 1

    Just give preference to people who drink plain black coffee.

    Then I would have a better chance of qualifying for space travel.

    --
    I am anarch of all I survey.
    1. Re:Preference by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      Just give preference to people who drink plain black coffee.

      Then I would have a better chance of qualifying for space travel.

      Yes, I'm sure that being able to drink black coffee will make all the difference.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  32. yea coffee by Osgeld · · Score: 1

    That's the problem with a 30 year stagnate space program that cant even muster enough excitement to justify its existence anymore

  33. You are floating above the Earth like Helios by zbobet2012 · · Score: 1

    You are floating above the Earth like Helios riding a chariot of fire across the sky. The greeks would have believed you a god atop Olympus. The blue earth turns below you, so captivating in its beauty that generations have marveled at the blue marble. The night sky is so full of stars it is dizzying in its beauty. You are participating in mankind's first steps to becoming immortal among them.

    But the coffee sucks.

    1. Re:You are floating above the Earth like Helios by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      You are floating above the Earth like Helios riding a chariot of fire across the sky. The greeks would have believed you a god atop Olympus. The blue earth turns below you, so captivating in its beauty that generations have marveled at the blue marble. The night sky is so full of stars it is dizzying in its beauty. You are participating in mankind's first steps to becoming immortal among them.

      Then the drugs wear off and you're a maintenance man on a rusty old tin can floating pointlessly in space.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  34. The perfect accompaniment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ah, space coffee. The perfect zero G accompaniment to floor pie. Mmmmm, floor pie.... D'OH!!!!

  35. Space Coffee? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I presume the space coffee "as you like it" comes with a "Jamaican blend, double strong, double sweet" option?

  36. wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If you have to add ingredients to coffee to make it taste good you are doing it wrong to begin with. It's like the whole febreeze commercials. If you spray enough of it, you can't smell the disgusting garbage! Hint: take out the garbage make good coffee.

  37. We're so screwed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "Fetch me your finest cup of coffee ! Make it perfect !" -- Ziltoid the omnicient
    http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x262hh_ziltoid-transmissions-part-01_music#.UX--1BeQXSk

  38. This doesn't seem that difficult by Zeromous · · Score: 1

    I'm no zero G expert, but I would make my space coffee like this:

    1) Normal Aeropress
    2) tea bag coffee
    3) sponge containing 500ml hot water
    4) Travel mug, with attachment for aeropress, dump powdered sugar cream selection in to cup, attach press.
    4) Insert sponge
    5) Press.

    No spill, no dripage, no cleanup other than wipe down of aeropress.

    Why do we need science?

    --
    ---Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A START
    1. Re:This doesn't seem that difficult by rpstrong · · Score: 1

      Two problems: Weight and waste. As a composter, I'm fairly cognizant of the amount of coffee grounds produced for my own modest two mug a day habit. You not only need to deal with processing the used grounds, you also have to pay the cost of delivering them via rocketry - which makes overnight delivery options cheap in comparison.

    2. Re:This doesn't seem that difficult by Zeromous · · Score: 1

      Absolutely true, but I don't see this being resolved.

      --
      ---Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A START
    3. Re:This doesn't seem that difficult by rpstrong · · Score: 1

      Please elaborate. The powdered pouch system leaves the coffee grounds on earth. The powdered coffee is not only a fraction of the weight of the original beans, it is also totally consumed.

      Slightly off topic: My own coffee habit is based on my New Orleans roots; I was practically weaned on Bourbon and drip pot French Market coffee. I've switched to a 'normal' coffee maker, but I do have a French press which serves me well during power outages. I've never used an Aeropress, but it does look like an improvement on the principle.

  39. Seriously??? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? by DrPeper · · Score: 0

    THIS is what you spend your college days doing? Developing COFFEE for non-existent space flights? Oh how proud your parents MUST be. I know I certainly am. You definitely deserve a high paying position when you get out of college for this *incredible* feat of mental fortitude. Society in general DEFINITELY needs more useless people such as yourselves. Whoop, Whoop!

  40. Re:Seriously??? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Huh? If there aren't space flights, who exactly is on the ISS?

  41. "American" is not a race, dumbass by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "American" is not a race, dumbass. It's a nation. He's culturist, if you must label him. As he's also amusing and probably correct, 96 million people are now laughing at you.