What Is True About Astronauts’ Dirty Laundry? (2023)

FAQs

What Is True About Astronauts’ Dirty Laundry? ›

Since you can't just run the laundry in space, astronauts keep wearing their clothes until they're filthy and then put them in the receptacle. Clothing does stay clean a little longer in space than it would on earth. Less energy is expended in zero gravity, which means that astronauts don't sweat as much.

There does come a time when astronauts have to get rid of some of their dirty clothes. Some of them are put in cargo spacecrafts which burn up in the Earth's atmosphere, while other more expensive items like spacesuits are sent back to Earth for cleaning and repairs.

Have you ever wondered how astronauts clean their clothes in space? You may find the answer surprising – they do not. They wear their under clothes, and everything else, until they cannot take the dirt and smell anymore. Then, they throw them away.

The crew does not do their laundry. Water is dense and heavy and expensive to transport to space. It is more economical to replace their clothes when they become too soiled to wear anymore. The dirty clothes are put into the outgoing Progress module along with any other trash the crew has.

The astronauts fasten themselves to the toilet, so that, their body won't float away. They then use a device similar to a vacuum cleaner to suck any wastes away. Inside the Space Shuttle, there are no wash basins or showers, but the Shuttles do have toilets. The toilet facility is 1 meter by 1 meter large.

Some previous space stations were equipped with showers, but these are not fitted in the Shuttle or the ISS. Instead, astronauts use a damp, soapy cloth for washing. There is no washing of dirty dishes either. Used food containers are crushed and thrown away.

According to NASA astronaut with over 30 years of experience, female astronauts generally wear bras in space, not for support, but for comfort and modesty. Cameras are placed all over the space station, and the bras can help protect their privacy from male astronauts.

And what if you have to pee? The Maximum Absorbency Garment (MAG) is the astronaut diaper. Astronauts wear a MAG during launch, landing, and spacewalks – whenever they can't remove their spacesuits for long stretches of time. Like any diaper, the MAG absorbs liquid and pulls it away from the skin.

In space, the astronauts wipe the walls, floors, and windows to keep them clean. They use a soap that kills germs. The astronauts also use wet wipes to wash things. They use the same kind of wipes and cleanser on their forks, spoons, and eating trays.

The moisture and oils that outgas from your clothes will put large stresses on the fabrics and might ruin your clothes. Also, you could shrink your new sweater and that was a gift from your grandmother; you wouldn't want that right? You would freeze-dry your laundry (as solar vacuum UV degraded its substances).

Why is there no fridge on the ISS? ›

“A normal fridge on Earth is also hot in the back. We can't have that in space. Warm air doesn't rise in microgravity; it stays stationary and can cause things to overheat, so you must get rid of heat some other way.

All astronaut pee is collected and turned back into clean, drinkable water. Astronauts say that “Today's coffee is tomorrow's coffee!” Sometimes, astronaut poop is brought back to Earth for scientists to study, but most of the time, bathroom waste — including poop — is burned.

The federal agency announced astronauts aboard the International Space Station have been able to recover 98% of the water that crews take into space with them by recycling everything from urine to sweat.