One of the iconic chapters Simpson this is Homer from deep space, which premiered in February 1994 as part of the fifth season of the FOX animated series. In it, Homer becomes an astronaut and wreaks havoc in space by smuggling a pack of potato chips and disabling the ship’s systems after an ill-fated “food dance” in zero gravity. A situation that, as funny as it may seem, bears some resemblance to a real life event that happened to astronauts Gemini IIIsince 1965.
This mission is considered a fundamental part of the success of the United States space race. After all, Gemini III was not only the first in its two-crew program, but also served to test several core spacecraft functions that paved the way for the Apollo missions. These include docking maneuvers and the use of thrusters to change the size and shape of one’s own orbit. However, it also went down in history as the first case of food smuggling in space.
John Youngone of the Gemini III pilots, entered the ship with a corned beef sandwich hidden in an astronaut suit. As long as it doesn’t seem too outrageous. But the case quickly became public, for which Young and Gus Grissom, the mission commander, were reprimanded.
Gemini III and the first recorded case of space food smuggling
Curiously, NASA provided Gemini III with approved food to sustain the nearly five hours of the mission. However, the menu was not very appetizing, as it consisted of food divided into cubes covered with gel to prevent possible crumbs from falling on the ship’s instruments. In fact, one of the purposes of the flight was to try out a new variety of specially packaged foods.
But dehydrated food did not cause passions in astronauts. Gus Grissom himself admitted that he complained more than once about what they were given by NASA nutritionists. So it was a big surprise when John Young pulled a steak sandwich out of his pocket and offered her a bite. “I was concentrating on the operation of our spacecraft when all of a sudden John asked me, ‘Would you like a corned beef sandwich, Captain? If I could fall off the couch, I would. Indeed, I was holding a real corned beef sandwich in my hands,” the commander explained years later.
Yet the joy was short-lived. After a few bites from rye bread, crumbs began to pour, which floated around the cabin. So Yang put the rest of the sandwich back in his suit pocket. But the situation did not go unnoticed by NASA engineers, who announced the return of Gemini III, which small pieces of bread could jam electronic systems. And the wake-up call was immediate:
“After the flight, our superiors at NASA informed us in no uncertain terms that the unapproved corned beef sandwiches were no longer being used for future space missions.”
Gus Grissom, commander of the Gemini III.
An interesting story, no doubt.. Of the many that remain from the first years of the frantic race for the moon.
Source: Hiper Textual
