Astronaut Mike Fincke Shows Off His Breakfast Before Space Shuttle Launch (PHOTO)

What does an astronaut eat before a historic blastoff into space?

Colonel Mike Fincke, who boarded Space Shuttle Endeavour for its final flight on Monday, tweeted a photo of his last meal ahead of the launch.

Fincke's epic meal, which he tweeted a photo of at around 5AM ET, included two lobster tails and a baked potato.

Because of the early morning launch, the astronauts were operating on a modified schedule. Finke tweeted at 4:30 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon that the astronauts were going to sleep before their big day, which began after midnight. They dined just prior to suiting up.

Take a look at Astronaut Fincke's tweet and his breakfast (below). Then, view photos of Endeavour's launch, as well as iconic images from the shuttle's past.

LOOK:

RT @AstroIronMike: My special send off meal http://t.co/cx1O6jbless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyNASA
NASA

LOOK:

Comments

[MiddletownHal]

11:56 AM on 05/17/2011

No wonder NASA is broke! WTF is wrong with grape nuts & a banana?

[theveggiedude]

11:13 AM on 05/17/2011

Makes me sad that our space voyagers have to eat other citizens of planet Earth before their venture.

Star Trek did not say "To boldly go where no one has gone before, to seek out new life and eat them"

[Brent Leatherman]

02:12 PM on 05/17/2011

Considering that a lobster has the general mental development as a cockroach, I say we eat more of them.

[JScott]

10:49 AM on 05/17/2011

Certainly not those TV dinner like meals you sucked thru a straw in 2001 A Space Odyssey.

[Victor Saymong]

09:19 AM on 05/17/2011

Because space flight is highly risky, astronauts can have whatever they want as a last meal before launch because it may be their last meal ever and because it will be their last "proper" meal for weeks or even many, many months if they are posted to the ISS for a while.

[kooosh]

07:07 AM on 05/17/2011

Lobster tail is my favorite. Also love a baked potato. Give me a side of salad or broccoli and I'm in heaven. :)

[jwmellott]

06:58 AM on 05/17/2011

No Tang????

[Guest211]

06:48 AM on 05/17/2011

For those interested in all things science... check this out...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNr2qBtETmk&NR=1

[zyxwvutsrqpo]

06:32 AM on 05/17/2011

oh... I thought that this was a joke...

I got one!

What does Bruce Lee drink?.......
WA - TAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!

[sockman]

07:53 AM on 05/17/2011

lol..an old one ...but a good one!

[ramal]

05:20 AM on 05/17/2011

I thought they just ate taxpayer money.

[AERO]

04:48 AM on 05/17/2011

Moon pies.

[haval2]

07:14 AM on 05/17/2011

LOL F & F

[jcarterla]

04:12 AM on 05/17/2011

Cuttlefish and asparagus?

[rf dude]

03:39 AM on 05/17/2011

What do you wash a meal like that down with? Depends.

[BurtonDesque]

02:02 AM on 05/17/2011

I thought the traditional breakfast for astronauts was steak and eggs.

[kallen87]

01:09 AM on 05/17/2011

The real question is, what do they eat on the shuttle? That sounds more interesting that this..

[jsarets]

01:40 AM on 05/17/2011

They like spicy foods because the lack of thermal convection in microgravity tends to dull the aroma component of taste (and also because the astronauts are based in Houston). Chicken fajitas and southwestern eggs are two very popular items. Some entrees are available partially dehydrated (condensed) for Shuttle or completely freeze-dried for the ISS.

Flour tortillas (irradiated and individually vacuum-packed to inhibit mold) are a staple item because they wrap around foods to contain any droplets that might float away and they don't tend to make crumbs like other breads or crackers.

Astronauts also like to snack on nuts, chocolates (especially m&ms), and sour candies (because sour is another way around the dulled tastes in microgravity). When space on visiting vehicles is available to deliver fresh produce to the ISS, the most popular request is oranges.

[CintiBlue]

08:46 AM on 05/17/2011

Interesting post. Thanks.

[BoFo]

03:48 AM on 05/17/2011

Tang.

[VerizonCells]

12:47 AM on 05/17/2011

i dont get it, is this like a death-row last meal.

[kallen87]

01:08 AM on 05/17/2011

Hahaha...I was thinking the same thing!

[killerclowns]

01:12 AM on 05/17/2011

Apparently not..still flying ?................However, I would scream like a 4yo girl on acid on the way up...