Would you like pie with that? (NASA) <\/p>\n
Peggy Whitson was the first female commander of the International Space Station. In October 2002, she was living on the Station. And during STS-112, the shuttle mission that sent astronauts to help build out the Station's infrastructure, her husband took part in a time-honored tradition: he sent her a care package. <\/p>\n
One of his gifts? A pie. <\/p>\n
In a talk about Station life at the Aspen Ideas Festival yesterday, astronaut Jeffrey Ashby told the pie-in-the-sky story. Traditional gifts that shuttles delivered to Station-bound astronauts tended to be things like books and movies and DVDs, he said -- things to help astronauts living on the Station keep connected to the people and cultures back on Earth. <\/p>\n
In Whitson's case, though, the gift was a pecan pie-- a gesture from her husband.\"I don't know how he got it past the food people,\" Ashby said. <\/p>\n
There was a problem, though: in order to make it up to the Space Station, the pie had to be, you know,launched into space. Even stored in a locker aboard the shuttle -- and even being pecan, one of the hardier types of pie -- the baked good was subject to g-forces. So by the time it arrived, Ashby said, \"the pie was in about half the shell.\" <\/p>\n
That was okay, though. In this, as with most gifts, it was the thought that counted. And, fortunately, Whitson's husband had also included in his care package a foodstuff that is less delicate and, in tastebud-challenging space,even more valuablethan pie: hot sauce. <\/p>\n
More From The Atlantic<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
See the rest here: Would you like pie with that? (NASA) Peggy Whitson was the first female commander of the International Space Station Continue reading
\nThat Time an Astronaut Got a Pie Sent to the International Space Station<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"