Slashdot Mirror
The International Space Station (Finally) Gets an Espresso Machine
coondoggie writes NASA this week will be sending its first espresso making machine into space, letting astronauts onboard the International Space Station brew coffee, tea or other hot beverages for those long space days. Making espresso in space is no small feat, as heating the water to the right temperature – 208F – and generating enough pressure to make the brew are critical in the brewing process. And then getting it into a “cup,” well that’s nearly impossible in gravity-free space. NASA, the Italian space agency ASI, aerospace firm Argotec, and coffee company Lavazza have come up with en experimental machine that will deliver the espresso into what basically amounts to a sippy pouch.
All they need now is a nonfat/soy cow so they can make latte.
You can get to any pressure you need as long as it's designed along the lines of a pressure cooker.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
I sometimes drink from an insulated, sealed mug that's like a sippy cup. Still tastes OK, but I miss the odor filling my lungs with excitement. The good news is that the coffee doesn't oxidize or taste bitter after a couple hours in that cup.
...omphaloskepsis often...
if only there were some way to dehydrate or freeze-dry coffee to make instant coffee. Then all this expensive and dangerous technology would not be needed and they could have had coffee years ago.
I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
Can you get to 208 degrees F at the internal pressure at which the space station is maintained?
No, they cannot because they use SI units.
Have gnu, will travel.
"Hey we've got some upcoming technical challenges for future missions that need us to deal with pressurizing and heating liquids"
"Okay, what are the parameters?"
"A lot like coffee actually"
"Well then...let's trial our technology by building an espresso machine."
NASA this week
Eh. Try "This week, NASA..."
will be send
Ahem.
its first espresso making machine into space [comma] letting astronauts onboard the International Space Station brew coffee
for those long space days.
Err, for those what? The only thing you can remotely call a "day" on the ISS is about 90 minutes long.
making the water heat
Or "heating the water" as we say in English...
And then getting it into a “cup,” well that’s nearly impossible in gravity-free space.
And writing an article in proper journalistic English, well that's nearly impossible if you insist on writing down words as if you were speaking them out loud and don't bother editing them afterwards.
Also low-Earth orbit is not "gravity-free."
Can we please not link to articles that appear to have been written by a well-read LOLcat?
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Can you get to 208 degrees F at the internal pressure at which the space station is maintained?
No. No one on the design team thought about that, so they're going to go through all of the expense of designing, building, and launching an espresso machine to the ISS only to realize that no one though about pressure. The launch got postponed though, you better call up NASA and ask them if anyone thought of pressure before it's too late. Feel free to offer your own expertise.
"Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black
You're confusing boiling point with temperature.
No, I don't think he is, but I think maybe you don't understand the relation between boiling point and easily achievable temperature. You put water in a pot and apply heat. That heat then makes its way to the water, heating the water. Once the water reaches it's boiling point, it vaporizes, leaving the pot. Once it's outside of the pot, it's EXTREMELY difficult for you to add more heat to it. Thus if your boiling point is X, it's pretty much impossible to get the water to a temperature greater than X under typical circumstances.
Thus, in him asking "Can you get to 208 degrees F at the internal pressure at which the space station is maintained", the implied question is "does the space station have an atmospheric pressure that results in a water boiling point of 208 degrees F or greater?"
The atmosphere on board the ISS is similar to the Earth's.[142] Normal air pressure on the ISS is 101.3 kPa (14.7 psi);[143] the same as at sea level on Earth. An Earth-like atmosphere offers benefits for crew comfort, and is much safer than the alternative, a pure oxygen atmosphere, because of the increased risk of a fire such as that responsible for the deaths of the Apollo 1 crew.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Everything I write is lies, read between the lines.
You put water in a pot and apply heat. That heat then makes its way to the water, heating the water.
Whoa, slow down cowboy. This is a lot of new information to process all at once.
Its always 90 minutes or less until bedtime.
I hope it avoids making something almost, but not quite, entirely unlike coffee.
Left MS Windows for Linux Mint and never looked back!
Vote for Bernie in 2016!
You prefer they install a Colt 45 dispenser?
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Do you understand what an espresso machine does and how it works?
The heated water and steam are under about 10bar of pressure, and forced through the cofee. It works by having its own pressure internally.
Unlike a normal coffee pot or a tea pot, you do NOT simply put water in a pot and apply heat. You pump it into a pressure chamber, and heat it to exactly the temperature you want. It's almost boiling, but not quite.
With the answer being that the internal pressure of the space station, unless it has depressurizes altogether, is not relevant to how a properly designed, space espresso machine will generate its own pressure.
That's what "espresso machine" means. That's why it makes very different coffee from either other methods.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
I think it is more about how many compression/decompression cycles an aluminum-skinned aircraft can handle before you end its service life. Inflate the aircraft to a higher pressure and it will cause more stress.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Especially since at 10 bar the boiling point of water is 179C.
Well, I might have a way, but it only works on a semi spherical planet in a vacuum.
"Hey we've got some upcoming technical challenges for future missions that need us to deal with pressurizing and heating liquids" "Okay, what are the parameters?" "A lot like coffee actually" "Well then...let's trial our technology by building an espresso machine."
"In fact, let's buddy up with an international coffee brand, so that someone else can shoulder part of the expense of our liquid pressurisation tests."
(tax dollars indeed!)
Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'