{"id":1694,"date":"2014-11-12T10:48:39","date_gmt":"2014-11-12T10:48:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/?p=1694"},"modified":"2017-06-12T10:57:49","modified_gmt":"2017-06-12T10:57:49","slug":"one-reason-astronauts-coolest-job-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2014\/11\/one-reason-astronauts-coolest-job-world\/","title":{"rendered":"ONE MORE REASON WHY ASTRONAUTS HAVE THE COOLEST JOB IN THE WORLD"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"pic\"<\/p>\n

Watermelon is awesome \u2014 we all know that. I\u2019ve written in the past<\/a> about how the Japanese love watermelon so much that they give it away as gifts and display expensive square watermelons in their homes as decorations.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re not the only ones who appreciate the gesture of a good watermelon. It\u2019s customary for Russian cosmonauts to also receive watermelon (among other fruits) after missions in outer space. Above is cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev being showered with fruit in September after returning to Earth from a five-and-a-half month space mission.<\/p>\n

If it sounds like a pretty underwhelming gift for someone who spent half a year in a weightless environment, you\u2019d be right, but the fruit has practical benefits, too. After six months of dining on rehydrated astronaut food, even something as ordinary as a watermelon can be a pretty awesome treat.<\/p>\n

I can relate, too. I\u2019ve never spent six months in outer space, but I did serve in the Navy on board a nuclear submarine. We\u2019d often spend six months or more at sea, and while our dining options were slightly better than an astronaut\u2019s (although that\u2019s debatable), we also didn\u2019t have the luxuries of fresh watermelon during our voyages under the sea.<\/p>\n

When we finally returned to our home port, things like a bowl of ice cream, a fast food burger and a slice of watermelon were like a meal in a four-star restaurant. So, welcome back, Mr. Russian Cosmonaut, and enjoy that watermelon!<\/p>\n

UP NEXT: A Thanksgiving drink the kids will love<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Watermelon is awesome \u2014 we all know that. I\u2019ve written in the past about how the Japanese love watermelon so much that they give it away as gifts and display expensive square watermelons in their homes as decorations. They\u2019re not the only ones who appreciate the gesture of a good watermelon. It\u2019s customary for Russian […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1695,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[388,389,390],"class_list":{"0":"post-1694","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-general","8":"tag-astronaut-watermelon","9":"tag-watermelon-customs","10":"tag-watermelon-gift","11":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nONE MORE REASON WHY ASTRONAUTS HAVE THE COOLEST JOB IN THE WORLD - What About Watermelon?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2014\/11\/one-reason-astronauts-coolest-job-world\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ONE MORE REASON WHY ASTRONAUTS HAVE THE COOLEST JOB IN THE WORLD - What About Watermelon?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Watermelon is awesome \u2014 we all know that. 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