Astronaut Makes Tacos from 1st Chili Peppers Grown in Space, Pics Released

Tacos are not only popular on our planet but also in space. ‘Best space tacos’: NASA astronauts have made the first chili pepper tacos which were grown in space. Astronaut Megan McArthur tweeted on Friday, featuring peppers that were grown in the International Space Station. Astronauts have been planting peppers in space for the last four months. Astronaut Meghan McArthur shared pictures and stated that “Finally, I made my best space tacos yet: fajita beef, rehydrated tomatoes, artichokes, and hatch chile.”

ISS stated that experimenting with growing plants was one of the most challenging tasks yet. NASA astronaut Meghan McArthur’s post was about the first space-grown green chili pepper with the caption “After the harvest, we got to taste red and green chile. Then we filled out surveys (got to have the date) Finally, I made my best space tacos yer: fajita beef, rehydrated tomatoes and artichokes, and HATCH CHILE.”

The space agency further said that “Feeding crews on the Moon, and especially Mars, will be a logistical challenge. While crews will still rely on packaged foods from Earth, part of the challenge is that sending supplies beyond low-Earth orbit requires more propellant and longer delivery times, particularly to Mars. Packaged foods stored for long periods result in degradation of the food quality, which reduces the number of key nutrients like Vitamin C and Vitamin K.” They picked peppers for their experiment because peppers are a great source of Vitamin C. They are known as self-pollinating plants, making them one of the easiest plants to grow in space. NASA astronauts have grown plants and eaten more than ten types of plants since 2015, according to the agency. The agency further stated that 48 pepper seeds were planted in the device called a science carrier, containing baked clay for roots to develop.