The astronaut accused of consuming it was acquitted

Eight months: This is the duration of the mystery International Space Station. And even if it was “the booty” – A tomatoes – It certainly wasn’t who action movie However, the Hollywood actor’s disappearance has opened a debate about the alleged “culprit”. whose name is astronaut Frank Rubio. Let’s go in order.

It all starts when NASA Project launch Vegetarian-05, an experiment launched at the end of 2022 that – the space agency explained in a statement at the time – will study “crop growth, nutrient composition, microbial safety of food, flavor, and psychological benefits for the crew at the edge.” In essence: growing vegetables in space and studying their growth. A series of vegetables are selected for tests, incl tomatoes, Chinese cabbagedifferent types of lettuce And Russian red cabbage. The crime broke out last March, when each astronaut, after harvest, was given a sample of tomatoes in a bag ziplockwith a side note not to eat it because according to NASA there were risks related to possible mushroom contamination.

Luna Mission: The Italian unit passes the element initiation phase

At this stage it is done Red Robin, one of the dwarf tomatoes (2.5 cm in diameter) grown in orbit. And this is, in fact, Frank Rubio, floating away due to the absence of gravity. No one finds her anymore. So much so that his colleagues began jokingly accusing Rubio of actually eating him. “I didn’t eat the tomatoes – he acquits himself Astronautlast time in September in an interview – but at this point I was hoping so, because everyone already thinks so. I’ve spent many hours looking for him…but I’m sure he’ll prove me right sooner or later and he’ll show up again somewhere. “Maybe in years.”

But Red Robin’s disappearance lasted “only” 8 months: on Wednesday the announcement came from Rubio’s colleagues who remained on the plane. I.S (While the American astronaut who holds the record for staying on board the station for 371 days returned to Earth). «Our dear friend Frank Rubio, who returned home, has long been accused of eating tomatoes – said the NASA astronaut Yasmine Moqbeli During Wednesday’s live broadcast – but we can exonerate him. “We found Red Robin.”

Research on the International Space Station

In Rubio’s defense, we must remember that the International Space Station is larger than a six-bedroom house, and in conditions MicrogravityObjects can easily fly into unexpected angles. Normally NASA’s procedure is to inspect vents, but at a station crowded with 25-year-old material, it’s easy to lose track of individual objects. Also, searching for tomatoes did not completely occupy the astronaut’s time, given that the crew conducted hundreds of other scientific experiments over a period of months. “The reality of the problem is that the humidity at the top is about 17% – Rubio himself explained – perhaps the tomatoes are so dried that someone found them without understanding what they were and threw them away. Let’s hope someone finds it one day: a withered little thing.’ And that day came, last Wednesday.

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