posted 12-13-2007 10:57 AM               

Here's a quick transcript of one of their replies:

Does Harmony still have that 'new module smell' or has it now become just another of the station's rooms?

"Unfortunately, it doesn't have that new module smell but it has that new module look that's fantastic," said Tani with a smile.

"The bright white walls, as you can see," he continued, referencing his surroundings inside the node, "it's slowly getting all the equipment that we tend to place on the outside of the lockers and on the seat rack as we bungee things in and as we start using it."

"So, it still does have that nice shine. It's clearly the new module up here. We love playing around in it."

Whitson agreed.

posted 12-14-2007 12:49 PM               

What a great question. In fact it made we think... have they ever answered a question on what it smells like on the Station?

posted 12-15-2007 03:59 PM               

quote:

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We flew 10 million basil seeds for the education program and every time I would go in that locker, you'd get this big whiff. Even through the heavy plastic, you could smell basil. The effect it had on orbit was it made us all wish we had a big plate of lasagna in front of us. I don't know if word got back or if it was just coincidence, but our first meal when we got back to crew quarters was lasagna. We were all happy to have that.

I didn't think much more of it, having gotten over our little lasagna-jonesing, but then a week later, I was in a supermarket restocking my cabinets in Houston and I bumped into a stand of basil leaves. I went over to pick up what I had knocked over, I got this big whiff of basil in my face again and for about three seconds I was back on Endeavour in orbit.

So what I recommend to anybody now is to take something that has a distinct smell with you in space because if you want to go back and relive it, that's a good way to take you back.

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