Pizza, Shrimp Cocktails, Breakfast Cereal: Here’s How Sunita And Wilmore Survived For 9 Months In ISS

Last Updated:March 19, 2025, 08:56 IST

According to a source familiar with the Boeing Starliner mission issues, the astronauts' access to fresh fruits and vegetables was limited, making it challenging for them to maintain a balanced diet during their extended stay on the ISS.

Here’s How Sunita And Wilmore Survived For 9 Months In ISS. (Photo/X)

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams made a successful splashdown landing off Florida’s coast in a SpaceX capsule on Tuesday, marking the end of their extended nine-month stay on the Space Station (ISS). Their original week-long stay on the ISS was disrupted due to issues with Boeing’s Starliner craft.

Prolonged space travel can have physical consequences, including muscle and bone loss, fluid shifts that increase the risk of kidney stones, vision problems, and balance issues when returning to Earth’s gravity. These effects are well-documented and managed by NASA. Both astronauts were experienced ISS crew members and refreshed their station training before launch.

What Did Williams And Wilmore Eat In ISS?

Last year in November, the New York Post reported that the NASA astronauts had been eating pizza, roast chicken and shrimp cocktails aboard the ISS.

According to a source familiar with the Boeing Starliner mission issues, the astronauts’ access to fresh fruits and vegetables was limited, making it challenging for them to maintain a balanced diet during their extended stay on the ISS.

A space program insider revealed that the astronauts had access to breakfast cereal with powdered milk, pizza, roast chicken, shrimp cocktails, and tuna. NASA medics monitored their calorie intake.

Fresh Fruits, Vegetables Ran Out Within 3 Months

The insider had said that fresh fruits and vegetables that were initially available ran out within three months. “There’s fresh fruit at first, but as the three months continues that goes away — and their fruits and vegetables are packaged or freeze-dried," the insider said in November last year.

To simplify meal preparation, all meat and eggs were pre-cooked on Earth and merely needed reheating on the ISS. Dehydrated meals like soups, stews, and casseroles were rehydrated using water from the station’s 530-gallon freshwater tank. Additionally, the station also recycles astronauts’ urine and sweat into fresh water for consumption.

The specialist clarified that any weight loss was not due to a lack of food on the ISS. “So to be accurate, it should be very clear that any weight loss is not due to a lack of provisions on the ISS. There is plenty of food, even for an extended mission." 

The Space Station is provisioned with about 3.8 pounds of food per astronaut daily, with additional reserves on hand to accommodate any unforeseen mission extensions.

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