While millions of Americans are about to gather around a table topped with turkey, stuffing, and all other sorts of Thanksgiving fare, two in particular are preparing for a much different meal. Almost 300 miles above the Earth's surface, NASA Astronauts Terry Virts and Barry Wilmore are building a "feast" with their four weightless international colleagues aboard the International Space Station. NASA breaks it down on YouTube:
The orbiting astronauts didn't have a special meal delivered to them, rather they've compiled one with some of the core menu foods that the ISS is stocked with: irradiated smoked turkey, thermo-stabilized candied yams, freeze-dried cornbread dressing, and a cranapple desert. Crew members are allowed to fill "bonus containers" with special items, which are often specific to the holidays each crew knows they will be aboard the station for.
"Thanksgiving Plans And A Selfie !" #AstroButch pic.twitter.com/pXKy9lmaOU
— NASA Astronauts (@NASA_Astronauts) November 26, 2014
None of this may look appetizing, but food and special occasions are crucial parts of keeping ISS crew members (or any other past and future astronauts) happy and focused during their missions. One good thing — which has been noticed often and was spotted in the video above — is that they do have Sriracha aboard the ISS, so they can always spice up the bland meals. There is, however, one huge missing piece of the traditional Thanksgiving puzzle — no place to store leftovers.