Have you ever wondered why you never see any pictures of astronauts eating or drinking? Maybe that’s because food and drink in space are strictly functional and utilitarian. Drinks–coffee, tea, juice or alcoholic beverages–are contained in sealed bags and sipped through straws. Not very satisfying for the drinkers, since they miss the aroma which is a very essential part of the drinking experience. And the visuals of space drinks are neither dashing nor heroic.
The Zero Gravity cocktail glass is set to change all of that, thanks to Cosmic Lifestyle. The project aims to bring aesthetics to the business of life in space, and to create domestic objects that are both utilitarian and attractive to behold. Life in space, according to the Cosmic Lifestyle Corporation, is akin to a very long camping trip. Looking ahead to space tourism, long-term travel and residence, it wants, in very real terms, to humanize space.
So now it seems that style does not need to be sacrificed to functionality. The new drink ware “…combines the beauty of the classic Martini glass with the physics of space science.” The design of the Zero Gravity cocktail glass borrows inspiration from a space coffee mug designed by NASA astronaut Don Petit. It uses the propensity of any liquid to clump together under microgravity, by giving it a lot of surface to adhere to. A grooved inner surface will hold the liquid together and keep it from flying off in different directions.
The team behind the idea includes a mixologist, a robotics engineer, a Hollywood prop and set builder and a space designer. The group is looking for funding on Kickstarter and project hopes to put one of its zero gravity cocktail glasses on board the International Space Station by October 2015.
