NASA has managed to get men on the moon, rovers on Mars, and probes around Saturn‘s rings.
But it seems the space agency is yet to master how to make an appetising cheeseburger in space.
Jonny Kim, a NASA astronaut on board the International Space Station (ISS) has shared a photo of a ‘cheeseburger’ floating in zero-gravity.
Unlike the fast-food treats that many of us enjoy here on solid ground, it doesn’t look very appetising.
Despite being 260 miles above the nearest grocery store, his snack impressively consisted of five ingredients.
This includes ‘wheat snack bread’ as the bun, a beef steak as the burger, and congealed cheese spread as the cheese.
‘I miss cooking for my family,’ the astronaut, who has been on board the ISS since April 8, tweeted.
He added: ‘But this hits the spot in its own way.’
Jonny Kim, a NASA astronaut on board the International Space Station (ISS) has shared a photo of a ‘cheeseburger’ floating in zero-gravity
Despite being 260 miles above the nearest grocery store, his snack impressively consisted of five ingredients
Kim launched to the ISS on the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft on April 8, 2025, and is set to spend eight months on board the floating space station.
Since his arrival, Kim has been keeping his fans on X updated on his experiences – including his meals.
‘If you’ve lived on MREs [ready-to-eat meals], you’ve probably tried some creative field recipes, he tweeted.
‘Here is a twist on the ranger burger, one of my favorites.’
With limited resources on board the ISS, Kim had to get pretty creative with his burger.
‘Beef steak, wheat snack bread, cheese spread as both topping and glue, potatoes au gratin layered in the middle, and a generous slather of gochujang red pepper paste from a care package on the SpX-32 Cargo Dragon,’ he explained, alongside pictures of his creation.
While the burger doesn’t look particularly appetising, several fans have applauded his efforts.
‘In outer space while inventing new lunchables! Keep up the good work,’ one user replied.
With limited resources on board the ISS, Kim had to get pretty creative with his burger. This includes ‘wheat snack bread’ as the bun, a beef steak as the burger, and congealed cheese spread as the cheese
Unlike the fast-food treats that many of us enjoy here on solid ground, Kim’s burger doesn’t look very appetising
Another added: ‘Thank you for sharing this tasty looking sandwich and views from your adventures in space thus far!
‘Lots of respect and admiration.’
This isn’t the first time an astronaut has attempted to create a cheeseburger in space.
Back in 2015, astronaut Terry Virts tweeted a photo of a strange-looking ‘space cheeseburger’ wrapped in a tortilla.
‘Beef patties, Russian mustard, tomato paste, cheese paste and tortilla. VERY TASTY!’ the Baltimore-born astronaut wrote alongside his post.
EXPLAINED: THE $100 BILLION INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION SITS 250 MILES ABOVE THE EARTH
The International Space Station (ISS) is a $100 billion (£80 billion) science and engineering laboratory that orbits 250 miles (400 km) above Earth.
It has been permanently staffed by rotating crews of astronauts and cosmonauts since November 2000.
Crews have come mainly from the US and Russia, but the Japanese space agency JAXA and European space agency ESA have also sent astronauts.
The International Space Station has been continuously occupied for more than 20 years and has been expended with multiple new modules added and upgrades to systems
Research conducted aboard the ISS often requires one or more of the unusual conditions present in low Earth orbit, such as low-gravity or oxygen.
ISS studies have investigated human research, space medicine, life sciences, physical sciences, astronomy and meteorology.
The US space agency, NASA, spends about $3 billion (£2.4 billion) a year on the space station program, with the remaining funding coming from international partners, including Europe, Russia and Japan.
So far 244 individuals from 19 countries have visited the station, and among them eight private citizens who spent up to $50 million for their visit.
There is an ongoing debate about the future of the station beyond 2025, when it is thought some of the original structure will reach ‘end of life’.
Russia, a major partner in the station, plans to launch its own orbital platform around then, with Axiom Space, a private firm, planning to send its own modules for purely commercial use to the station at the same time.
NASA, ESA, JAXA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) are working together to build a space station in orbit around the moon, and Russia and China are working on a similar project, that would also include a base on the surface.
