Astronauts on International Space Station are growing chile peppers in a first for NASA:
The astronauts are growing red and green chile peppers in space for what will be "one of the longest and most challenging plant experiments attempted aboard the orbital lab," NASA said.
Hatch chile pepper seeds arrived at the station in June aboard a SpaceX commercial resupply services mission.
NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough, a flight engineer who helped grow "Outredgeous" red romaine lettuce in space in 2016, initiated the experiment by inserting 48 seeds into the Advanced Plant Habitat (APH) on July 12.
A team with Kennedy Space Center's Exploration Research and Technology programs planted those seeds in a device called a science carrier, which slots into the APH, one of the three plant growth chambers on the orbiting laboratory where the astronauts raise crops.
[...] Researchers spent two years evaluating more than two dozen pepper varieties and eventually landed on the NuMex "Española Improved" pepper, a hybrid Hatch pepper from New Mexico.
While astronauts have previously harvested veggies such as lettuce and radishes, this experiment could give astronauts something to satisfy their menu fatigue.
Romeyn said crew members may prefer spicy or seasoned foods because they can temporarily lose their sense of taste or smell after living in microgravity.
The peppers should be ready for harvest in about three and a half months. After eating some of them, the crew plans to send the rest to Earth for analysis.
Also at USA Today.
[Ed note] Apparently there are several variations on the spelling of chilli:
The chili pepper (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl chīlli [...], is the berry-fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum which are members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 21 2021, @03:07AM (5 children)
Fire on the ISS burned the tongues of several astronauts.
(Score: 3, Touché) by c0lo on Wednesday July 21 2021, @03:40AM (4 children)
Don't forget the "ring of fire" consequences. If the zero-g conditions don't affect the typical guts reaction on Earth, they may end experimenting with a messy form of personal reactive propulsion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Wednesday July 21 2021, @04:01PM (3 children)
Unless eaten in concentration or large amounts, normal "hot peppers" aren't going to do that to you. Definition of "Normal" anything about as hot as a standard Jalapeno pepper.
https://www.scovillescale.org/chili-pepper-scoville-scale/ [scovillescale.org]
Anything in the Habanero scale is equivalent to "it hurts so bad, I want to die". You should be using small amounts to flavor an entire pot of chili.
Anything in the Bhut Jolokia scale is equivalent to "I am dying", please call 911. You shouldn't be using this.
Anything in the Carolina Reaper scale is equivalent to "I am become death", emergency services are probably too late to save you and they can't do much about it anyway. Never use this. That being said, I mean, it's probably not terribly likely you'll die, you'll just wish you had.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Wednesday July 21 2021, @04:06PM (1 child)
For clarification of "small amounts" of Habanero, we're talking about, 1 or two drops to a pot.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 21 2021, @07:06PM
Nah, 1-2 drops of habernaro is nowhere near hot enough.
You need 3-4 drops of Ghost Pepper sauce to really get the temp to where it needs to be.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday July 21 2021, @10:57PM
Personal experience - is mainly those seeds which you miss taking out and reach the end of the journey undigested that produce most of the ring of fire effect.
But maybe I haven't had enough experience so far in the upper side of the scale.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford