Category Science

Because of the lack of gravity, going to the toilet in space can be a tricky operation. Toilets on board space stations are equipped with restraints to hold an astronaut in place. A powerful vacuum pump is used to create a seal between the body and the seat. Waste products are collected. Some are recycled, while solid waste is disposed of safely.

Each spacecraft comes equipped with a unisex toilet. Although the toilet itself looks like a slightly higher-tech version of its counterparts here on Earth, it’s designed a bit differently. The toilet consists of a commode that holds solid wastes and a urinal for liquid wastes. A funnel that fits over the genital area allows both men and women to urinate standing up, although they also have the option of sitting down.

To prevent the astronauts from floating away in t­h­e weightless environment, the toilet comes equipped with foot restraints (for sitting) and a toe bar to slip the feet under (for standing). The toilet also has a thigh bar similar to the one that pulls down over your lap when you ride a roller coaster and fabric fasteners that go around the thighs.

To ensure that the waste also doesn’t float around, the toilet uses flowing air instead of water to flush the toilet. The air pulls the waste away from the astronaut’s body and flushes it away. After the air is filtered to remove bacteria and odors, it’s returned to the living cabin.

But where does all the waste go? Don’t worry, it’s not going to come hurtling into the Earth’s atmosphere and through your roof. Solid wastes are dried to remove all moisture, compressed and kept in an on-board storage container. They’re removed and disposed of once the spacecraft has landed. The liquid waste is sent into space.

On the International Space Station, liquid wastes are recycled through a special water treatment plant and turned back into drinking water. Solid waste goes into a plastic bag. Each time someone goes to the bathroom, the bag clamps down and seals like a trash compactor. The bags are collected and placed into a special craft that is launched into space.

Going to the bathroom becomes even more challenging when astronauts take a walk outside their spacecraft. Because they can’t simply drop their space suit and go, astronauts typically use a superabsorbent adult diaper. These diapers are able to hold up to a quart of liquid. Astronauts use adult diapers during take-offs and landings as well. After the spacewalk, the astronauts remove the diapers and dispose them in a storage area in the craft.

Conditions on board a Space station can be very strange. There is no gravity, which means that astronauts can float in mid-air and lift heavy objects with ease. In a space station, there is no up or down, which can be very confusing, so the walls, floor and ceiling are painted different colours to help the crew orientate themselves. The lack of gravity means that astronauts can eat or sleep on the walls, or even the ceiling, but it can also prove troublesome. Scientists have to strap themselves to the walls when they are working to stop themselves floating away. The planned ISS habitation module is equipped with everything astronauts need to live normally for long periods in space, including a gym, a galley, medical facilities and a meeting area.

The International Space Station is an orbiting space laboratory, assembled through a decades-long collaboration of countries. The 360-ton space station is larger than a five-bedroom house — just much longer and narrower. It has enough room for six sleeping quarters, a gym, a 360-degree viewing window, and areas to conduct a wide array of science experiments. “We’ve had continuous human presence on the space station for 19 years now,” said NASA spokeswoman Stephanie Schierholz. “It is an unprecedented international collaboration among nations.”

Working in outer space for six months has its challenges. Microgravity means that crew members have many obstacles to their regular routines, such as eating, sleeping and hanging out. The space station has no refrigeration, meaning all food has to be stored carefully and is often vacuum-packed. Some foods come in special forms, such as spaghetti which requires added water or rehydratable scrambled eggs. Even salt and pepper come in liquid form because without gravity the sprinkles would fly away.

At dinner time, crew members have to strap meal trays to their laps or to the wall. And while preparing meals, astronauts tape ingredients to the table so they don’t float away. Morning routines also get shaken up by zero-gravity. In the absence of regular showers and sinks, astronauts and cosmonauts use rinse less soap and shampoo and spit their toothpaste into washcloths. The crew also has to use special toilets which have leg restraints and a vacuum for waste.

Solar technology converts sunlight into electricity. Solar cells are made of special materials called semiconductors, mainly silicon. When light strikes, the cell part of it is absorbed into the silicon, and knocks electrons loose. The cell’s natural electrical field forces the loose electrons to form a flow, which is an electric current.

The electrical system of the International Space Station is a critical resource for the International Space Station (ISS) because it allows the crew to live comfortably, to safely operate the station, and to perform scientific experiments. The ISS electrical system uses solar cells to directly convert sunlight to electricity. Large numbers of cells are assembled in arrays to produce high power levels. This method of harnessing solar power is called photovoltaic.

The process of collecting sunlight, converting it to electricity, and managing and distributing this electricity builds up excess heat that can damage spacecraft equipment. This heat must be eliminated for reliable operation of the space station in orbit. The ISS power system uses radiators to dissipate the heat away from the spacecraft. The radiators are shaded from sunlight and aligned toward the cold void of deep space.

Since the station is often not in direct sunlight, it relies on rechargeable nickel-hydrogen batteries to provide continuous power during the “eclipse” part of the orbit (35 minutes of every 90 minute orbit). The batteries ensure that the station is never without power to sustain life-support systems and experiments. During the sunlight part of the orbit, the batteries are recharged. The nickel-hydrogen batteries have a design life of 6.5 years which means that they must be replaced multiple times during the expected 30-year life of the station. The batteries and the battery charge/discharge units are manufactured by Space Systems/Loral (SS/L), under contract to Boeing. N-H2 batteries on the P6 truss were replaced in 2009 and 2010 with more N-H2 batteries brought by Space Shuttle missions. There are batteries in Trusses P6, S6, P4, and S4.

A space station must maintain an atmosphere similar to that on Earth in order for it to be habitable. In the ISS, oxygen is made by electrolysis. A generator splits water into oxygen and hydrogen. Carbon dioxide is collected by special materials and released into outer space. Water is recycled for maximum efficiency. It is collected from various sources including urine, sinks and showers, and cleaned for reuse. The ISS is heated by all the electronic equipment on board.

The air and water on the Space Station all originally came from Earth. Astronauts and cosmonauts transport these vital supplies to the Space Station when they travel there on Soyuz capsules (a type of spacecraft). Astronauts and cosmonauts also receive supplies from uncrewed spaceships, such as the Russian Progress and American Dragon. Uncrewed means with no people on board.

But fresh supplies from Earth aren’t enough to sustain the Space Station. That means if you’re onboard the Space Station you are really, really into recycling. The Space Station’s water recycling system produces pure drinking water from waste water, sweat and even urine. In the words of astronaut Douglas Wheelock, “Yesterday’s coffee is tomorrow’s coffee.”

Water, which is made of oxygen and hydrogen atoms bonded together, is also used to maintain oxygen supply on the International Space Station. Using a process called electrolysis, which involves running electricity through water, astronauts and cosmonauts are able to split the oxygen from the hydrogen.

Electricity is one thing on the Space Station that doesn’t come from Earth, as the Space Station’s vast solar panels convert sunlight into power. But what’s done with the hydrogen that’s left over? Using some chemistry and smart thinking, they’re actually able to turn it back into water! The hydrogen is combined with carbon dioxide (that the astronauts and cosmonauts breathe out) to produce water and methane. So now there’s some more water to drink, while the methane is simply waste that is blown out into space through special vents.

So if you get a chance to see the Space Station tonight, you can marvel at many things. Marvel at a spaceship travelling more than seven kilometres every second. Marvel that you can see where people live 400 kilometres above the Earth. And marvel at recycling that keeps people alive in the harsh environment of space.

Because space stations are so large, it is impossible to build them on Earth and then carry them into space. Instead, space stations must be built in orbit. This can be a long, difficult and dangerous process. The International Space Station (ISS) is currently in orbit around Earth. It began construction in 1998, but installation of all 100 components will not be finished until 2006. Over forty space flights will be needed to bring parts and equipment to the ISS, and around 160 space walks, totaling nearly 1300 hours, will be required to put it all together.

The International Space Station weighs almost 400 tonnes and covers an area as big as a football pitch. It would have been impossible to build the Space Station on Earth and then launch it into space in one go – there is no rocket big enough or powerful enough. To get round this problem the Space Station was taken into space piece-by-piece and gradually built in orbit, approximately 400 km above the Earth’s surface. This assembly required more than 40 missions.

The International Space Station (ISS) is a multi-nation construction project that is the largest single structure humans ever put into space. Its main construction was completed between 1998 and 2011, although the station continually evolves to include new missions and experiments. It has been continuously occupied since Nov. 2, 2000.

As of January 2018, 230 individuals from 18 countries have visited the International Space Station. Top participating countries include the United States (145 people) and Russia (46 people). Astronaut time and research time on the space station is allocated to space agencies according to how much money or resources (such as modules or robotics) that they contribute. The ISS includes contributions from 15 nations. NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia) and the European Space Agency are the major partners of the space station who contribute most of the funding; the other partners are the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency and the Canadian Space Agency.

Current plans call for the space station to be operated through at least 2024, with the partners discussing a possible extension until 2028. Afterwards, plans for the space station are not clearly laid out. It could be deorbited, or recycled for future space stations in orbit.

Crews aboard the ISS are assisted by mission control centers in Houston and Moscow and a payload control center in Huntsville, Ala. Other international mission control centers support the space station from Japan, Canada and Europe. The ISS can also be controlled from mission control centers in Houston or Moscow.