The first Italian woman in space, Samantha Cristoforetti, brewed up the first espresso in space, making her a zero gravity barista. This experimental Italian-made espresso machine’s delivery was delayed for a while due to a shipment backlog but finally came into orbit in April. She posted a photo of herself on Twitter from the International Space Station on Sunday, sipping from a cup designed for use in zero-gravity.

Italy’s 120-year-old coffee maestro Lavazza and the Turin-based engineering firm Argotec, which teamed up on the space espresso project with the Italian Space Agency, were ecstatic to see their 260-mile-high results.

“Today the International Space Station feels a little more like home,” Lavazza said via Twitter.

The espresso actually is brewed in a clear pouch, behind the closed door of the boxy coffee maker, and that’s how Cristoforetti and NASA crewmate Scott Kelly first sampled it. The space espresso maker uses small capsules, or pods, of espresso coffee. Fifteen coffee capsules flew up with the machine aboard a SpaceX cargo carrier, as well as five capsules for flushing out the system. More coffee capsules are available for launch if requested by the six-person crew.

“Coffee: the finest organic suspension ever devised,” Cristoforetti said via Twitter, quoting from the old TV series, “Star Trek: Voyager.”

FSA Connection Questions

1. What literary device does the author use in the title?
2. Why does Lavazza say that the ISS “feels a little more like home”?
3. Why do you think Cristoforetti made a reference to Star Trek:Voyager?
4. What is the definition of a barista?
5. List the process of making an espresso in space.