Contrary to popular myth, Tang was NOT invented by NASA.
The orange breakfast drink was developed in 1957 by General Foods, but it wasn't used in space until 1962.
"People always ask about Tang, and yes, we still use it. But it wasn't developed for the space program," said Michelle Perchonok, the project manager over advanced food technology for NASA.
When NASA began planning for space travel, "It happened that General Foods at the time had already developed Tang, and NASA took a look at it and said 'Ooh,'" Perchonok said.
NASA's official Web site notes that "In 1962, when astronaut John Glenn performed eating experiments in orbit, Tang was selected for the menu, launching the powdered drink's heightened public awareness."
People were intrigued with space cuisine. The fact that Tang was the drink on every Gemini and Apollo mission, plus a General Foods advertising blitz, put sales into orbit during the '60s. Tang came back into the spotlight in 1998, when Glenn, at the time an Ohio senator, requested it for his return to space.
But the space program was responsible for other technologies. Pillsbury scientists developed a food cube, the first solid food consumed in space by Scott Carpenter in 1962. The company launched a spin-off for consumers: the nutrient-dense, Tootsie-roll-like Space Food Sticks, which were wrapped in shiny foil for a "space age" look.
In the 1970s, as the initial buzz over the space program died down, Pillsbury sold them simply as Food Sticks. They were discontinued in the 1980s.
One of the most important contributions was the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point System, Perchonok said. It was developed by Pillsbury scientists to prevent food poisoning. The premise is to identify all the points in food processing where food could become contaminated and put a safety measure in place. The HAACP system has become a standard in canned foods, meat, poultry and seafood inspections operations.
Other contributions from NASA:
• A freeze-drying and packaging system to make shelf-stable foods for camping, emergency food rations and for homebound senior citizens.
• Meals that come in "retort" pouches, a flexible package that combines the advantages of a metal can and a boil-in bag.
• A metallic film, first used as a signal-bouncing reflective coating for the Echo 1 communications satellite, is used today in a wide variety of food packaging.
• A fast-cooking oven designed for the International Space Station is now used in the food-service industry.
• Cook/chill hot plates for hospitals came out of a NASA contract with 3M to develop an electrically heated insulated dish that served as both plate and oven when slipped into a control module.
• An algae-based additive for infant formula that contains fatty acids believed to aid in mental and visual development.
• A way to use gases from decomposing trash to fuel the needs of a greenhouse.
• An ethylene scrubber that removes 99 percent of the ethylene gas emitted by fresh fruits and vegetables while in storage facilities, thus keeping them from spoiling. Ethylene gas that accelerates ripening.