While choosing a signature scent may often be a challenge, the quest to be memorable could very well be an issue of the past with Eau de Space – a NASA-designed fragrance which supposedly smells like the Mir Space Station.
NASA had originally contracted Steve Pearce – chemist of Omega Ingredients – to develop the “smell of space” for training purposes, thereby ensuring astronauts would face zero surprises when they were launched beyond the stratosphere. But this very scent was something that was kept under lock and key for some time.
Now, after cutting through all the red tape and “a couple of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests”, the “smell of space” will soon be readily available for you to purchase, take home, and enjoy in all its glory.
So what exactly does “space” smell like? As astronaut Peggy Whitson once described to CNN back in 2002:
“It’s kind of like a smell from a gun, right after you fire the shot… I think it kind of has almost a bitter kind of smell in addition to being smoky and burned.”
Eau de Space’s Product Manager, Matt Richmond, added that it’s apparently a combination of “gunpowder, seared steak, raspberries, and rum“. Certainly distinct if nothing else.
Find out more about Eau de Space over at kickstarter.com.
