# NASA Wants the Ultimate Beer Cooler for the ISS **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 2, 2005, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053 "2005-05-02T15:14:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/1 "2005-05-02T15:14:37Z")
[They say it’s for cryogenics research.](http://main.uab.edu/show.asp?durki=79087) > [@](#): > > The Center for Biophysical Sciences and Engineering (CBSE) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) has been awarded a NASA contract for phase two development of a cryogenic freezer, called the General Laboratory Active Cryogenic ISS Experiment Refrigerator, or GLACIER, for use aboard the International Space Station (ISS). > > “GLACIER will have many applications,” Crysel said. “In addition to supporting any research in microgravity that requires cryogenic temperatures, it could provide freezer storage for the astronauts for a host of things, such as medications.” :rolleyes: Right, guys. You just want it to keep your brews cold.😃 ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/2 "2005-05-02T15:23:19Z")
So much for Coleman’s 5-Day cooler. ---
**Author:** ![Ponder\_Stibbons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponder_stibbons/32/343_2.png) [@Ponder\_Stibbons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponder_Stibbons)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/3 "2005-05-02T15:25:11Z")
Finally! Space research with a _practical_ application! I mean, who needs a zero-G pen, anyway? But a better beer cooler is, indeed, a giant leap for mankind. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/4 "2005-05-02T15:26:23Z")
Temperatures outside the ISS can reach minus 250 degrees Fahrenheit, which equates to minus 155 degrees centigrade. They can though heat up a bit too, so I hear. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/5 "2005-05-02T15:57:29Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Temperatures outside the ISS can reach minus 250 degrees Fahrenheit, which equates to minus 155 degrees centigrade. They can though heat up a bit too, so I hear. I’d hate to be the beer bitch on that flight. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/6 "2005-05-02T16:03:08Z")
Minus 250 degrees Fahrenheit? Come on, your brews won’t be cold, they’ll be frozen rock solid! :rolleyes: 😛 ---
**Author:** ![DirkGntly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d9b06d/32.png) [@DirkGntly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DirkGntly)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/7 "2005-05-02T16:32:36Z")
> [@Kythereia](#): > > Minus 250 degrees Fahrenheit? Come on, your brews won’t be cold, they’ll be frozen rock solid! :rolleyes: 😛 But only on one side…the side facing the sun will be boiling over… ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/8 "2005-05-02T16:45:05Z")
_tries to picture this, head goes explodey_ Actually, that _would_ be kinda cool… 🆒 My question is: what kind of beers would they be drinking aboard the space station? ---
**Author:** ![Balle\_M](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@Balle\_M](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balle_M)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/9 "2005-05-02T16:52:52Z")
> [@Kythereia](#): > > _tries to picture this, head goes explodey_ Actually, that _would_ be kinda cool… 🆒 > > My question is: what kind of beers would they be drinking aboard the space station? Well, since weight is such a factor in space launchers I’d say light beer. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/10 "2005-05-02T17:27:47Z")
Not just beer… Vodka Martianis, Sloe Oxygen Fizz and Wallbangers too. ---
**Author:** ![Regallag\_The\_Axe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/regallag_the_axe/32/445_2.png) [@Regallag\_The\_Axe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Regallag_The_Axe)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/11 "2005-05-02T17:41:56Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Not just beer… Vodka Martianis, Sloe Oxygen Fizz and Wallbangers too. Don’t forget the Pan-galactic gargle blasters. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/12 "2005-05-03T01:43:39Z")
Hmmm… Beer (or soda pop) in zero-g could be an interesting phenomenon… it would seem to me that since in freefall there would be no reason for the bubbles to “rise”, they would just keep growing right at the point of formation, stuck to the walls of the container or in brownian motion through the liquid, and you’d end up with a drink that was all “head”… ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/13 "2005-05-03T02:19:00Z")
> [@Kythereia](#): > > My question is: what kind of beers would they be drinking aboard the space station? Man alive, can you imagine the _advertising_ that would go along with being the first beer in space? Miller “Missile” Lite, “Sputnik” Schlitz, Bud-“flies’”-er, Blue “Halfway to the” Moon! Honest question though: Have they ever done any _serious_ experimentation with carbonated beverages? I mean, with the globs of soda (or whatever) floating around, you’d have a big sphere of fizz. Where else would the bubbles go? Tripler Serious questions from serious scientific minds [sub]and serious drunks![/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/14 "2005-05-03T02:44:03Z")
Pepsi and Coke sent specially modified cans in space on one of the shuttle missions. According to the astronauts, only one of the cans actually worked. The other one was simply a jerry-rigged can made to _look_ like it would work. If you tried to open an ordinary carbonated beverage container in space, the stuff would aerosol and you’d be in danger of drowning in the stuff. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/15 "2005-05-03T08:33:14Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > the stuff would aerosol and you’d be in danger of drowning in the stuff. AWESOME!! ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasa-wants-the-ultimate-beer-cooler-for-the-iss/302053/16 "2005-05-03T08:39:49Z")
IIRC the astronauts unanomously prefered fruit drinks to either soda, too.