Astronaut bakery plan really takes the biscuit

As humans travel further into the universe, the ability to cook food in space will become more important, a former Nasa astronaut has said.

With journeys into the unknown set to become longer, it will be more difficult to re-supply missions and carry everything on board.

But very soon the smell of freshly baked cookies could be wafting through the International Space Station.

A prototype oven with the ingredients needed to bake DoubleTree by Hilton’s signature cookie is destined to make its way to the crew.

If the mission succeeds, the chocolate chip confections will be the first food baked in space, Hilton says.

Mike Massimino, who was the first astronaut to tweet from space, explained the importance of the endeavour.

He said: “Right now we are at the space station, more or less, and I think soon we will be travelling back to the moon – to settle this time, not just to visit – or maybe onwards to Mars.

“As we journey further away it is going to be harder to re-supply, and food, for example, is one of the most important things.

“And therefore being able to prepare your own food, cook your own food – we have never been able to cook food from raw ingredients before, this is a first – will be important.”

But Mr Massimino said the feat would be about much more than just sustenance.

He said: “Part of it is the psychological effect of food, and I didn’t really appreciate this until I became an astronaut.

“When you think about sharing a meal with other people, your family, your friends, and what you are going to eat, it is comfort food, it reminds you of home.

“I think that it is going to be good for morale.”

However, he added that it was not known how the cookie would react to being baked in space – whether it would be puffy, whether it would fall apart, or whether it would be the same as it is on Earth.

And, as might be expected of something cooked in space, it is thought the cookie will have a somewhat alien appearance, taking on a cylindrical form.

It is not known yet whether the astronauts on board the International Space Station will be able to eat the baked treats.