Tabasco's giant leap

As a child, one prominent Baton Rouge resident packed tiny bottles of Tabasco to save boarding school cafeteria meals. Last week was a reminder that the sauce still travels well and still has the power to rescue broccoli au gratin.

Made on Avery Island, Tabasco was one of five hot sauces packed on the Artemis II test flight around the moon. NASA says the others were Sriracha, Cholula, Frank’s RedHot and, for reasons nobody has fully explained, Heinz Hot Taco.

The pantry list had the usual mix of practical and odd: tortillas, mango salad, granola, strawberry drink, pudding, chocolate and, yes, broccoli au gratin.

Louisiana had another fiery role in the trip. Much of the rocket booster was built at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans.