When the Artemis II made history last week, it’s safe to say that millions of people all over the world were on tenterhooks as they witnessed the first manned moon mission in over half a century.
Yet while the four astronauts on board, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen could easily have been expected to be the main focus of the mission - it was an unexpected jar of Nutella spread that stole the limelight just as their Orion spacecraft whipped around the Moon at a distance of a whopping 252,752 miles.
Just moments before the crew broke a record previously set by NASA’s Apollo 13 mission in 1970 for the farthest distance travelled from Earth, a solitary jar of the chocolate spread could be seen floating past the astronauts throughout the Orion capsule, with the jar - just like something out of a TV ad - twirling in mid-air to reveal a clear shot of the brand’s logo.
“Nutella just hit a world record flying as far away from Earth as nobody else did before,” one X user wrote in response to the moment.
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“Nutella just got the ultimate Space Ad provided by the Artemis 2 crew,” remarked another user.
The picture perfect visuals prompted many users to speculate that product placement may have been involved, with several users even suggesting that the Italian Nutella manufacturer Ferrero may even have been part of a focused brand deal.
Yet while the notion of being the first commercial food brand deal in space would be one for the history books, NASA was quick to shut down rumours that any product placement had taken place or been planned.
Agency press secretary Bethany Stevens told Futurism, “NASA does not select crew meals or food in association with brand partnerships.”
“This was not a product placement,” she added.
While Nutella may have been the only food to have made it on camera for the pivotal distance, it is far from the only delicious food the astronauts are tucking into during their short trip into space. So far, the team have been feasting on mac and cheese, beef brisket, broccoli au gratin, and scrambled eggs, among many other menu items, with a reported stash of 58 tortillas on hand to help devour that jar full of Nutella. And when dinner’s complete, what better way to wash it down than with an ample supply of coffee, lemonade, green tea and apple cider, as well as chocolate, vanilla and strawberry “breakfast drinks.”
Phoebe Tonks