NASA astronaut talks Thanksgiving in space: Watch it live, right here

Live streaming video by UstreamWhile you are pigging out on a turkey dinner here on Earth this Thanksgiving, the astronauts aboard the International Space Station will be enjoying their own Thanksgiving meal -- more than 250 miles above our planet.

But is a Thanksgiving meal in space any good? On Wednesday morning, you can find out. Astronaut Tom Marshburn --veteran of two space missions-- will discuss the Thanksgiving menu with Vickie Kloeris, the agency’s manager of the station’s food system, in a live broadcast.

ISS: International Space Station crews and images from space

The conversation will take place from 7 to 8:30 a.m. EST on Wednesday. (That’s right: If you want to see this conversation live, you will need to be awake at 4 in the morning).

I know the timing is insane. But it’s Thanksgiving! In space! And as you might suspect, a Thanksgiving in space requires a slightly altered menu. There will be turkey, but it will be smoked and irradiated (hit with radiation), so it will last longer. The yams may be delicious, but they will also be thermostabilized. And the green beans won’t be from a can; they’ll be freeze-dried instead.

The six astronauts on the space station will also enjoy “NASA’s cornbread dressing,� the requisite cranberries without which no Thanksgiving is complete, as well as home-style potatoes and cherry-blueberry cobbler.

A space-feast!

If the early hour of the live broadcast feels a bit much, you can always check out this video of astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins wishing those of us on Earth a happy Thanksgiving. They also show off their Thanksgiving grub, which, frankly, looks a lot less appetizing when its stored in little silver packets.

Thanksgiving is great. But is Thanksgiving in space better? Follow me on Twitter for more like this.

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