French Wines Return from Year in Space
2021-01-15
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1SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft landed off the coast of Florida Wednesday night carrying research materials, equipment and 12 bottles of French wine.
2But not just any wine!
3These bottles of wine and some grapevines had spent about a year in the International Space Station, orbiting the world in the name of science.
4The wine will not be opened until the end of February.
5That is when Space Cargo Unlimited plans to open a bottle or two for an out-of-this-world wine tasting in Bordeaux, France.
6Agricultural science is the main goal of the research, says Nicolas Gaume, the company's chief and co-founder.
7But he admits it will be fun to try the wine.
8He will be among the lucky few taking a taste, along with some French wine experts.
9Months of chemical testing will follow.
10Researchers want to see how space changed the wine's sedimentation and bubbles.
11Sedimentation is the process in which material is carried to the bottom of a liquid.
12Gaume told the Associated Press that his company's goal is to try to understand "how we're going to have an agriculture tomorrow that is both organic and healthy and able to feed humanity."
13Gaume added, "we think space has the key."
14With climate change, Gaume added agricultural products like grapes will need to be able to live in more difficult conditions.
15Through a series of space experiments, Space Cargo Unlimited hopes to take what is learned to make plants stronger on Earth.
16There is another reason for doing such space research.
17Gaume expects future explorers to the moon and Mars will want to enjoy some of Earth's nice things.
18"Being French, it's part of life to have some good food and good wine," he said.
19The wine bottles were kept in steel containers for safety when they went to the space station on a Northrop Grumman ship in November 2019.
20The 320 pieces of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon vines, called canes in the grape-growing business, left on the SpaceX spacecraft last March.
21At this time, SpaceX's Dragon is the only spacecraft capable of returning space station experiments and other items to Earth.
22Others burn up in the atmosphere on their return.
23I'm Bryan Lynn.
1SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft landed off the coast of Florida Wednesday night carrying research materials, equipment and 12 bottles of French wine. 2But not just any wine! 3These bottles of wine and some grapevines had spent about a year in the International Space Station, orbiting the world in the name of science. 4The wine will not be opened until the end of February. That is when Space Cargo Unlimited plans to open a bottle or two for an out-of-this-world wine tasting in Bordeaux, France. 5Agricultural science is the main goal of the research, says Nicolas Gaume, the company's chief and co-founder. But he admits it will be fun to try the wine. He will be among the lucky few taking a taste, along with some French wine experts. 6Months of chemical testing will follow. Researchers want to see how space changed the wine's sedimentation and bubbles. Sedimentation is the process in which material is carried to the bottom of a liquid. 7Gaume told the Associated Press that his company's goal is to try to understand "how we're going to have an agriculture tomorrow that is both organic and healthy and able to feed humanity." Gaume added, "we think space has the key." 8With climate change, Gaume added agricultural products like grapes will need to be able to live in more difficult conditions. Through a series of space experiments, Space Cargo Unlimited hopes to take what is learned to make plants stronger on Earth. 9There is another reason for doing such space research. Gaume expects future explorers to the moon and Mars will want to enjoy some of Earth's nice things. "Being French, it's part of life to have some good food and good wine," he said. 10The wine bottles were kept in steel containers for safety when they went to the space station on a Northrop Grumman ship in November 2019. The 320 pieces of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon vines, called canes in the grape-growing business, left on the SpaceX spacecraft last March. 11At this time, SpaceX's Dragon is the only spacecraft capable of returning space station experiments and other items to Earth. Others burn up in the atmosphere on their return. 12I'm Bryan Lynn. 13Marcia Dunn reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 14_______________________________________________________________ 15Words in This Story 16wine - n. an alcoholic drink made from the juice of grapes 17grapevine - n. a climbing plant on which grapes grow 18bubble - n. a tiny, round ball of air or gas inside a liquid 19organic - adj. of food : grown or made without the use of artificial chemicals key