Mmm Good Space Food

According to the dated claim of Vickie Kloeris in the article, “Besides, short of taking a stroll in the cold vacuum of space, there's no refrigerator on board any spaceship -- and who likes a warm can of cola?”

The claim of no refrigerator on board a spaceship is now false. Our organization flew our MERLIN (Microgravity Experiment Research Locker/Incubator) for just this purpose on the recent ULF2/STS-126 flight in November 2008. ISS Expedition 18 Commander Mike Fincke was a major driver in getting this piece of hardware flown. Usually tasked to providing a controlled environment for space-borne science, MERLIN was adopted as the first space refrigerator for the International Space Station. He remarked that a previous stint on the station without cold beverages (orange juice was his example) was simply uncivilized.

MERLIN resides in EXPRESS Rack 6 within the US Lab (along with Glacier – another UAB/CBSE payload) and is popular with the crew for providing chilled fruits and beverages. Merlin maintains a constant 4°C and is slated to remain on board for at least three years.