Astronauts at the Chinese Tiangong station now have an air fryer for meals

Chicken wings, steaks and cakes are among the dishes that astronauts at the Tiangong station can enjoy during their long stays in space thanks to the air fryer, which has a steam elimination system, explained Chinese Astronaut Center specialist Liu Weibo, quoted this Sunday (20) by the Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

According to Liu, the renovation of the "space kitchen" is part of a program that seeks to ensure that taikonauts, as Chinese astronauts are called, are well fed during their missions and can enjoy hot meals prepared in just twenty minutes.

The microwave was also designed to prevent any leakage and allow the crew to heat food with minimal energy consumption, he said.

The nutritional plan has also undergone improvements: taikonauts have access to a menu with a ten-day cycle and 200 ingredients, including fresh vegetables, oilseeds, cakes and meats suitable for preparation in orbit, as well as yogurt that can be fermented at the station itself.

Named Tiangong ("Heavenly Palace") and also known by the acronym CSS (for Chinese space station in English), the installation was designed to operate for at least ten years and could become the only inhabited space station in the world after the retirement of the International Space Station (ISS), scheduled for the end of this decade.

So far, the crews aboard Tiangong have mostly remained in orbit for six months before being replaced.

Beijing has strengthened its space program in recent years with projects such as the construction of the space station, the Chang'e lunar program and preparations for a future manned landing on the Moon before 2030.

The country also plans to build the first phase of a manned scientific base by 2035: the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), a partnership with Russia.

China was formally excluded from the ISS in 2011, when the United States banned NASA from collaborating with Beijing, which led the Asian giant to develop its own space station project.