Australia seems to have its priorities right when it comes to space exploration- they want to make sure astronauts can party in microgravity. Aussie brewers 4 Pines, along with Saber Astronautics Australia, are developing a new kind of bottle and beer for space travelers.
The brewers at 4 Pines are working on a new stout, the Vostok Space Beer, meant specifically for space travel. It is named after the rocket that cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin rode to orbit in April 1961, reports Space.com.
While it is possible to transport beer to space in a squeeze bag, drinking out of one would not be the same as drinking it out of a bottle. The idea behind 4 Pines developing a whole new type of bottle is to improve the experience for astronauts in space, intended to make it as familiar as possible.
The brewers at 4 Pines hope that the invention will give the astronauts a feel of actually drinking from a bottle instead of the usual packets that carry food and drinks to space.
The new technology will use principles of surface tension to keep the liquid clinging to the glass instead of letting it float out. To drink the beer, there will a sort of wick designed to draw beer from the bottom of the bottle to the neck, reports Futurism.
The stout will reportedly be less carbonated than regular beer to avoid frothing and the mess of a spill. However, it will still be bubbly enough to taste and feel like beer.
Though the idea seems interesting enough, no one can say as to when this beer and bottle will be ready. The company has set up a crowdfunding campaign to get this project started.
If it does get made, the invention could be a great addition to the proposed space hotel that is also under development. Watching 19 sunrises a day with Australian stout seems like a good vacation.
The announcement came just a few hours after Australia officially formed their first space agency which their government hopes will boost the "commercial utilization of space." Scientific missions are also likely to happen in future. A budget of around $38 million has been set aside as seed money for the agency.
Meanwhile, Budweiser started a campaign last year to try and grow hops on the ISS to brew beer on Mars directly because obviously, running out of beer mid-party is unacceptable.
