In Space, no one can help you pee

Overheal

Space Station inconvenienced as toilet fails

Plumber's call-out fees expected to be astronomical

Nasa has confirmed that the toilet on the International Space Station has failed, leaving astronauts in an urgent need for spare parts.
The problem lies with the fan that draws liquids into the waste chamber prior to being ejected to burn up in the atmosphere.
At the moment solids can be handled by the Russian-made toilet, but liquid disposal is proving impossible.
"Like any home the importance of having a working bathroom is obvious," said Nasa spokesman Allard Beutel.
Waste disposal in space has long been an issue, since gravity-fed toilets do not work in orbit. Instead the waste is sucked from the toilet by air pressure.
Space Shuttle Discovery is due to bring the next module for the Space Station into orbit on Saturday, and officials are considering adding replacement parts to the toilet during the mission.
However, at this late stage this may prove problematic as the load on the Shuttle has already been packed and weight distribution is critical on the flight.
There also may not be room for new equipment, since the Shuttle is carrying a 14,500kg Japanese laboratory which is so large that the Shuttle's robotic arm has had to be removed.
This is not the first time that Nasa has suffered problems with orbital plumbing. In 1984 Shuttle astronauts were forced to urinate into plastic bags and store them on board after fears that an improperly working toilet was causing icicles which were damaging the heat resistant tiles.

http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2217768/space-station-loo-fails

Its a shame the new module doesnt include a spare bathroom.

Steve_o

Oh dear.... You'd imagine with somethin as big and advanced as a space station would have more than 1 jax....

kwestfan08

Whats wrong with just going outside and peeing behind some bushes or something

briantwin

Serious case of cling-ons on the space station so!!

Steve_o

briantwin wrote: »

Serious case of cling-ons on the space station so!!

If they need compressed air to work the system, just give them beans!

Adam

briantwin wrote: »

Serious case of cling-ons on the space station so!!

It's more kosher to refer to such in public as simply "Star Trek"....like lads in the presence of a lady. "Oh man, the most awful ep of Star Trek last night, really sticky towards the end but afterwards it just sort of floated to a finish..."

biko

gravity-fed toilets

Gravity-fed toilets? So wrong somehow.

Overheal

Steve_o wrote: »

Oh dear.... You'd imagine with somethin as big and advanced as a space station would have more than 1 jax....

they have one on the russian module apparently but its not built to handle liquids.

The Artist

astronaut will have trouble with their floaters.

ScumLord

Jayz that must be torture holding it in till they get back.

ShoulderChip

The russians just used a pencil instead of spending millions on an upside down writing pen.

What would the russians do?

ScumLord

ShoulderChip wrote: »

The russians just used a pencil instead of spending millions on an upside down writing pen.

What would the russians do?

Write a strongly worded letter of complaint?

Overheal

ShoulderChip wrote: »

The russians just used a pencil instead of spending millions on an upside down writing pen.

I always love being reminded of that.

ShoulderChip

ShoulderChip wrote: »

The russians just used a pencil instead of spending millions on an upside down writing pen.

What would the russians do?

It's a Russian carzie!

ART6

The concept of a vacuum assisted s**thouse appeals -- could be the best ever cure for constipation?:D

Black Swan

What happened to redundancy? Didn't these engineers watch the film Apollo 13?

Oh, I know! They could GO (for a spacewalk)?

The_Minister

Airlocks FTW.

The guy

Bag and space airlock?

kwestfan08

kwestfan08 wrote: »

Whats wrong with just going outside and peeing behind some bushes or something

The problem is, that on the next orbit you may get your own back at 20,000kmh :eek:

Black Swan

DB! Haven't you heard of Star Wars (the American Republican version, originally coined by Ronny Raygun)? Just substitute laser for pee and aim at the latest country you don't like. You might even get financial support from the Lizard People (aka Bush administration).

Either that or have man made meteor showers after a curry!

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

There exists a common urban legend claiming that because a standard ballpoint pen would not work in zero gravity, NASA spent $11 million developing the zero-g capable Space Pen, with the humorous note that the Russian space agency opted to simply use pencils.[1] In fact, NASA programs have used pencils (for example a 1965 order of mechanical pencils[1]) but because of the danger that a broken-off pencil tip poses in zero gravity and the high flammability of both the graphite and wood present in pencils[1] a better solution was needed.

On top of all that, it turns out that a standard ballpoint pen will work in space after all.[2]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Pen#Uses_in_the_U.S._and_Russian_space_programs

Alun

ShoulderChip wrote: »

The russians just used a pencil instead of spending millions on an upside down writing pen.

Unfortunately, not true ...

http://www.snopes.com/business/genius/spacepen.asp

KnifeWRENCH

Alun wrote: »

Unfortunately, not true ...

http://www.snopes.com/business/genius/spacepen.asp

Bah! Stop ruining entertaining stories with "facts" :mad: Killjoy.

aidan_dunne

I found this part of the report possibly the most disturbing:

The problem lies with the fan that draws liquids into the waste chamber prior to being ejected to burn up in the atmosphere.

I've heard the expression "to be dumped on from a great height" but that takes it to a whole new level!

Reku

They should just pee in a bottle and undo the cap next spacewalk, the vaccuum would vapourise the pee, thereby also reducing the vaccuum of space so that maybe some day spacewalks without spacesuits would be possible... though still preferable.... wandering about in someone's piss-steam... *bleugh*






Before anyone tries to ruin this with fact: Yes I am aware of the incredible volume of gas you would need to generate to reduce the vaccuum of space even slightly. Yes I am aware that contact with stellar bodies would likely deplete the gas, increasing the required volume to affect the vaccuum. Yes I am aware that the universe is still expanding and so the required volume of gas to achieve the desired effect is constantly increasing.

ART6

farohar wrote: »

They should just pee in a bottle and undo the cap next spacewalk, the vaccuum would vapourise the pee, thereby also reducing the vaccuum of space so that maybe some day spacewalks without spacesuits would be possible... though still preferable.... wandering about in someone's piss-steam... *bleugh*






Before anyone tries to ruin this with fact: Yes I am aware of the incredible volume of gas you would need to generate to reduce the vaccuum of space even slightly. Yes I am aware that contact with stellar bodies would likely deplete the gas, increasing the required volume to affect the vaccuum. Yes I am aware that the universe is still expanding and so the required volume of gas to achieve the desired effect is constantly increasing.

I defer to greater knowledge than mine, but the idea of stellar bodies depleting the gas appeals. Front page in the Daily Star -- "Pissing on the sun might put it out says Minister Gormley".:)

Maybe the other possibility if they keep dumping sewage out of the ISS will be that one day gravity waves in space will cause it all to start to condense into an asteroid. That should give scientists a million years into the future something to think about -- a whole asteroid made of p*ss and sh*t. Tough chucks on the first ones to run into it!