SunChips Blasts Off With Astronaut Kellie Gerardi For Solar Eclipse

While much of the country gears up for the highly anticipated solar eclipse on April 8, SunChips is getting ready to wow fans with a new flavor in honor of the event. 

A partnership between SunChips and astronaut and researcher Kellie Gerardi, is getting SunChips fans excited for the new limited edition flavor mashup. 

For Gerardi, partnering with SunChips was a no brainer. Her love of space and for SunChips creates an excitement over the partnership, eclipse and new chip flavor.

“I always love when a brand is able to both have fun and meet the moment and I feel like for SunChips in particular, being able to look at something like a total solar eclipse and just meet that moment in society and create such a fun campaign around,” she told The Blast exclusively. “I was very excited when they asked me to be a part of it. Sharing an enthusiasm for space is something that’s important to me. It’s what I dedicate my social channels to. It’s what I love.”

Gerardi loves the “cosmic collision of flavors” of the limited edition SunChips. She even said it’s her favorite flavor to date.

“You can’t do SunChips without the sun obviously, so they created this really special cosmic collision of flavors for this limited-edition solar eclipse SunChips,” she said. “It’s pineapple habanero, which kind of evokes the sunny skies and bright days, and then black bean spicy gouda, which is a nod to the moon and a cheesy touch. They are delicious.”

The new flavor will only be available online and only during the eclipse. So fans have just four minutes and 27 seconds started at 1:33 CT to claim their bag at www.sunchipssolareclipse.com. 

“SunChips draws inspiration from the sun so there’s no better moment to spotlight this snack than during the extraordinary solar eclipse,” Rhasheda Boyd, vice president of marketing at Frito-Lay said in a press release.

“With this exclusive flavor drop, fans who enter for a chance to win their own bag during the moment of totality will have the opportunity to continue celebrating the eclipse even after the rare event is over.” 

Gerardi hopes that everyone who wants to experience the eclipse gets to and has a few tips to make the experience memorable and safe.

“My first tip would be, truly, it is something that is so special so if there is any possibility that you’re able to get into a city and travel to the path of totality, it’s truly worth it to experience. NASA’s website is a great resource to see the dozens or so states where you’ll be in the path of totality in the U.S.,” she explained. 

“Second, if you are there, being prepared with protective eyewear is another really important aspect. You want to have special eclipse glasses. Anytime you’re looking directly at the sun, you need to be wearing protective eye gear, specifically those eclipse glasses. And then during the moments of totality where the moon’s shadow is really covering the sun, that’s when you’ll be able to briefly momentarily remove that eyewear and look around.”

One other tip she shared was to make sure you take in the moment fully and look at everyone around you to see how they are reacting to the memorable experience.

“I think space is our shared past and our future as a species and so experiencing a celestial event like that together is something that’s really special and connective,” she said. “I’m looking forward to seeing my mom’s reaction, but also my 6-year-old daughter’s reaction but also just sharing something so special with them.”

In November, Gerardi got the chance of a lifetime to go into space. Even now, months later, she’s still struggling to find the words to explain the amazing experience.

“I feel like by now I should sort of have my answer down and I just don’t because it’s something that’s still plays in my mind when I fall asleep at night. Seeing that view, we’ve all seen images of the Earth from space, including much further away than I was, but for me, it was the difference of experiencing Earth as a planet among other planets and then the cognitive dissonance of being both a part of it and being slightly outside of it,” she told The Blast.

“And then just the moment of realization that I am not currently on the same planet as my baby.”

She said she’s grateful that there were cameras in the cabin on the spaceship she flew in to capture the moment she sees the Earth, "the overview effect."

The biggest challenge for Gerardi was that she had only one shot to get the job done. And even though every move in the ship was perfectly choreographed down to the second, there was still the pressure of knowing there won’t be a second chance.

“It’s not like I could try again the next time, so this was sort of the moment that all of those years of training came into play for me. I was so grateful for it,” she said. 

“It went flawlessly. I really put that down to practice and perfection. It went really perfectly. We’re in the process right now of our data analysis prior to publication, so it’s been really cool to get to see it.” 

The journey from takeoff to landing was about two hours. Gerardi hopes to get the opportunity to do it all over again, as well as hopes others in the industry get the chance to experience such a once-in-a-lifetime moment.

For now, Gerardi is really excited about her partnership with SunChips.

“To me, it’s really energizing when a brand that is so universally recognized and known meets the moment in a way like this. I think that’s something that I get excited by,” she said. “It’s something that I love being able to share with my family.”