How astronauts wash themselves in space. Space station: how astronauts live

Previously, the astronaut did not take off his spacesuit throughout the entire flight. Now in Everyday life he wears a T-shirt with shorts or overalls. T-shirts in orbit in six colors to choose from depending on your mood. Instead of buttons there are zippers and Velcro: they won’t come off. The more pockets the better. Oblique breastplates allow you to quickly hide objects so that they do not fly apart in zero gravity. Wide calf pockets are useful because astronauts often assume the fetal position. Instead of shoes, thick socks are worn.

Toilet

The first astronauts wore diapers. They are still used now, but only when entering open space and during takeoff and landing. The system for recycling waste began to be developed at the dawn of astronautics. The toilet operates on the principle of a vacuum cleaner. The rarefied air flow sucks in the waste, and it ends up in a bag, which is then unfastened and thrown into the container. Another takes his place. Filled containers are sent into outer space - they burn up in the atmosphere. At the Mir station, liquid waste was purified and turned into drinking water. For body hygiene, wet wipes and towels are used. Although “shower cabins” have also been developed.

Food

Tubes of food have become a symbol of the space lifestyle. They began to be made in Estonia in the 1960s. Squeezing from tubes, the astronauts ate chicken fillet, beef tongue and even borscht. In the 80s, sublimated products began to be delivered into orbit - up to 98% of the water was removed from them, which significantly reduces mass and volume. Pour into a bag with dry mixture hot water- and lunch is ready. They also eat canned food on the ISS. The bread is packaged in small bite-sized loaves to prevent crumbs from scattering throughout the compartment: this can cause problems. The kitchen table has holders for containers and utensils. A “suitcase” is also used to heat food.

Cabin

In zero gravity, it doesn’t matter where you sleep, the main thing is to securely fix your body. On the ISS, sleeping bags with zippers are attached directly to the walls. By the way, in the cabins Russian cosmonauts there are portholes that allow you to admire the view of the Earth before going to bed. But Americans don’t have “windows”. The cabin contains personal belongings, photos of relatives, and music players. All small objects (tools, pencils, etc.) are either slipped under special rubber bands on the walls or secured with Velcro. For this purpose, the walls of the ISS are covered with fleecy material. There are also many handrails at the station.

A COMMENT

Vladimir Solovyov, flight director of the Russian segment of the ISS:

- The life of astronauts has improved significantly. On board the ISS there is the Internet, the ability to send messages and read news. Communication tools make it possible to connect astronauts with their family and friends by telephone. There is always a lot of food at the station. Moreover, the astronauts choose their own menu.

You can make borscht from freeze-dried products, mashed potatoes, pasta. The only thing left in the tubes now is juice and a small nutrition kit used on approach to the station.

With every cargo ship we also send fresh food. Astronauts live full lives. The only thing that bothers me is the noise of the fans. They work all the time, but you can’t live without them.

The article talks about how astronauts go to the toilet in space and take a shower, as well as on what principle the space sewerage system and water supply system are designed.

Space

55 years ago, what many scientists dreamed of happened - man made the first space flight, escaping the boundaries of our planet.

Later, when it became clear that it was quite possible and necessary to deploy research stations in Earth’s orbit, all space powers began their design and development. However, due to the high cost of such projects, only the USA and the USSR were able to complete them. And later the ISS, the international space station, was created. It will soon celebrate twenty years of service life.

But the ISS is far from the first created for long-term habitation of people, which means it has everything necessary for relatively comfortable life cosmonauts and maintaining their vital functions, including a hygiene unit. And a delicate question that can often be heard from ignorant people: how do astronauts go to the toilet in space? This is what we will talk about in this article.

Hygiene

This topic rarely comes up in reports about astronauts, science films or literature, even science fiction. In works of art, inconvenient details are often suppressed. You can often find books about how brave space explorers from the future spend dozens of hours in combat or scientific spacesuits. Despite the sensitivity of the topic, the space toilet is complex technological device, the principle and design of which were developed by the best minds in engineering. And this is not without reason.

The thing is that orbital stations and spaceships have not yet been able to create, and the problem of space toilets became acute at the dawn of space exploration. Indeed, in the absence of gravity, human vital activity will simply scatter across the compartments and can cause a short circuit or clog the air circulation system.

So how do astronauts go to the toilet in space? In fact, it's simple. Toilets are designed on the principle of a vacuum cleaner - waste is drawn in through negative air pressure and then enters the recycling system. But let's look at their device in more detail.

Installation of ISS toilets

The bathroom on the orbital station is very important device, along with air exchange or thermoregulation systems. If it fails, further use of the station will become impossible. True, such situations have never happened before, and the astronauts have spare compact toilet devices. But the danger lies in the fact that in space it is impossible to open the porthole, throw out all the waste and ventilate the room from the unpleasant smell. So let's look at the question of how astronauts go to the toilet in space in more detail.

There are three bathrooms on the ISS, and two of them are Russian-made. Their toilets are suitable for crew members of both sexes. As already mentioned, they work on the principle of a vacuum cleaner, drawing all waste into the cleaning system and preventing it from scattering throughout the station’s compartments. And then the waste products enter the cycle of the processing system, where they are used to produce drinking and process water with oxygen.

Of course, the sanitary and hygienic block on the ISS and its toilet are very different from those on Earth. First of all, by the presence of fastenings for the legs (so that the astronaut does not fly away ahead of time), as well as special holders for the thighs. And instead of water, they use a vacuum, which draws in all the waste. After the cleaning cycle, the remaining waste is collected in special containers and, as they are filled, moved to one of the cargo ships for further disposal. So now we know how astronauts go to the toilet in space. But what if the astronaut needs to go to the toilet when he is in the spacecraft and not at the station?

Spaceship toilets

Launching a spacecraft into space and docking it with the ISS is a very difficult task. Sometimes astronauts have to sit in a rocket ready for launch for quite a long time, and the docking and maneuvering process drags on for tens of hours. Naturally, none normal person Can't stand that much without going to the toilet. Therefore, before launch, astronauts put on special diapers under their spacesuits. Device spaceship such that it is inappropriate to spend space on creating a separate, even the simplest toilet.

If you plan to spend a long time on board the ship, as was the case in the early years, when space stations did not exist, then special toilet devices are used - flexible hoses with nozzles in the form of funnels. Negative pressure in them creates air draft, solid waste is collected in garbage cans, and liquid waste is thrown outside the ship.

How do astronauts wash?

Initially, space explorers did without water procedures. They used wet wipes. But when the first space stations were built and launched into orbit, they were all equipped with showers. The air circulation system is closed, and it is difficult to get rid of foreign odors, so astronauts need to monitor hygiene. Not last role Psychological comfort also plays a role - after all, no one likes being dirty. So how do astronauts wash?

There are no separate showers at stations and especially on ships. And practice has shown that their construction is impractical. For washing, a special easy-to-rinse shampoo, wet wipes and tubes of water are used. Because of this, it sticks quite firmly to people’s bodies, and then they simply wipe it off with towels. Of course, this cannot be compared with a real shower, but still, this method also helps cope well with the natural pollution of the human body.

"Skylab"

This space station remained in orbit for about 6 years, and then was sent by operators into the Earth's atmosphere, where it burned up safely. True, not completely, and some of its elements still reached the surface. This station is notable for its presence large quantity free space and soul.

A modern space station is a place where every available corner of space is used. But Skylab was distinguished precisely by its internal dimensions. They were such that the astronauts, while charging, easily flew from one wall to another and generally noted that there was a lot of free internal volume. It was at this station that there was a shower, naturally modernized for conditions without gravity.

"World"

There was also a shower at the Mir station. But the modern ISS space station does not have it, since taking a shower in orbit is not the same thing as water procedures on the ground. The process was greatly delayed due to various difficulties, and the astronauts rarely used the device, preferring to wipe it down with damp towels. In addition, there is no dirt at the station, and therefore the skin gets dirty much less than on Earth.

Toilet and USSR

Everyone probably knows the name of the first cosmonaut in human history. But not everyone knows the name of the second one. He was the American Alan Shepard. And the first toilet problems among our former rivals in the space race began on May 5, 1961, before the launch of the Shepard rocket.

Alan, who by that time had been in the spacesuit for more than 8 hours, told the operator that he really needed to visit the toilet. But it was impossible to interrupt preparations for the launch, move the service tower to the ship, and then start preparing again. Such a scenario would lead to the flight being postponed. As a result, Shepard had to relieve himself directly into his suit. Engineers were afraid that this would lead to a short circuit and failure of most of the telemetry sensors, but fortunately, everything worked out.

But Gagarin’s flight was better planned. And although it lasted only 108 minutes, his ship was equipped with a special toilet device in the form of flexible hoses with funnels into which waste was sucked. True, it is not known whether Gagarin used it.

Conclusion

As you can see, a space toilet is a very important device, without which it would be impossible for astronauts to remain in Earth orbit for a long time. Despite apparent simplicity, a lot of money was spent on their design and implementation large sums. For example, the toilet that the Americans ordered from Russia for their segment of the ISS cost them $19 million. Well, during the process we are forced to use special diapers, since sometimes work outside of ships or the ISS lasts for many hours.

And let us recall an unappetizing detail with which astronauts like to surprise overly impressionable journalists: all waste enters the recycling system, where they are converted into water and oxygen for further consumption. But any serious activity requires sacrifice, and astronauts are ready to go to great lengths to achieve their dreams.

There, on the ISS, everything is different from on Earth. Of course, the people are the same, the planet that is visible from the window is also ours, dear.

But the conditions of being in outer space, in conditions of complete weightlessness, completely change the life of astronauts. This article lists the most Interesting Facts from the life of people in space.

1. You can see 16 sunrises in one day

Yes, in low orbit the Sun rises and sets every hour and a half, so it is almost impossible to sleep during such a cycle.

In order to improve the life of the ISS crew, a conventional 24-hour system was created, based on the so-called “mean” Greenwich Time. This is a time zone lying somewhere halfway between Moscow and Houston.

By the way, the cosmonauts get up when the bell rings, a signal that is sent from the MCC to the ISS. The sound signal is a melody that is chosen either by the astronaut himself or his family.

2. From space you can see stunning views of the Earth and reverse side Moon

From space, astronauts observe what can never be seen on Earth: the Earth - a blue disk on a black background, the far side of the Moon, as well as strange flashes of light in the eyes.

It turns out that this is not light at all, but cosmic radiation, which is perceived by the brain as a flash. Such flashes are very harmful to the eyes, and many astronauts subsequently have vision problems.

3. “There” you become taller

That's right, due to the lack of Earth's gravity, the spine lengthens a little, and you become taller by about 5-8 centimeters.

Unfortunately, this is not very good, and such “growth” is accompanied by various complications. For example, your back may hurt or a nerve may be pinched. Things happen.

4. Astronauts don't snore

A person who snored on Earth will not snore in space. This is because it is the force of gravity that causes snoring. Only isolated cases of snoring among sleeping astronauts have been reported in space.

By the way, some other sleep abnormalities also disappear in conditions of weightlessness. Astronauts in space suffer from constipation.

5. Salt and pepper have to be mixed with water

Of course, astronauts have seasonings in liquid form. How do you imagine salting or peppering food in zero gravity?

Therefore, it is necessary to create various liquid seasonings that improve the taste of foods from the astronauts’ diet. Otherwise, using seasonings would be a big problem.

6. Longest period of stay in space - 438 days

Russian cosmonaut Valery Polyakov spent the longest time in space. He remained aboard the Mir space station for 438 days (that's 14 months). His mission ended in 1995.

According to data up to 2004, out of 439 astronauts, 11 died during training, 18 during accidents during launch, and only 3 people - the Soyuz-11 crew - died directly in space.

Georgy Dobrovolsky, Viktor Patsaev and Vladislav Volkov died from the depressurization of the ship, which occurred as a result of module separation in 1971.

7. Almost every astronaut suffers from space sickness

Yes, this happens too. During the first days in weightlessness, many astronauts experience all the unpleasant sensations associated with the manifestation of space sickness.

This “disease” manifests itself in loss of orientation, in the fact that a person ceases to feel the position of his arms and legs. Some people even feel upside down all the time.

According to statistics, every second cosmonaut experienced unpleasant sensations associated with the manifestation of “space adaptation syndrome.” Yes, there is such a name. But everything becomes fine after a few days - the unpleasant sensations go away.

8. On Earth, astronauts have a hard time adjusting to gravity.

Upon returning to Earth, people have to re-adapt to our conditions. Astronauts especially suffer because they can’t get used to things falling.

They have already learned that objects float freely in the air, and subconsciously continue to expect the same on Earth.

This is how it turns out that an astronaut can try to leave a cup in the air, forgetting that it is about to fall and break.

9. There is special hygiene in space

It is impossible to take a bath in space; wet sponges and napkins are used for hygiene. It is also problematic to brush your teeth; you just have to swallow the foam from the toothpaste.

- MCC! Our computer is out of order! What to do??

- Play as a substitute! I repeat! Play on the bench! (earthly humor)

To understand what astronauts do in orbit, we invite you to live a whole day on the ISS and see what exactly the astronauts do.

06:00. Rise (times in this schedule are given in GMT)

The start of the main astronaut shift for the American Control Center occurs at midnight, complicating the work of NASA's Mission Control Center and seriously increasing the load on the coffee machines. It’s easier for the Moscow Mission Control Center; for them, the astronauts rise to the station at nine o’clock in the morning.

Mornings on the International Space Station aren't necessarily good. Besides the fact that you wake up to an alarm, like millions of other people left on Earth, in space you may wake up with a sore head from oxygen starvation. The thing is that, despite the constant ventilation on board the station, the air on the ISS moves more slowly, without creating strong currents from drafts. As a result, it turns out that the carbon dioxide exhaled by astronauts remains near the face.

Astronauts often complain of lack of sleep, nightmares and bad dreams, although they are allocated eight and a half hours of sleep (the dream of any Muscovite!). There are problems in orbit and with falling asleep. Sleeping in a sleeping bag tied to the wall in the absence of the usual gravity is not so easy. For safety reasons, the light does not turn off completely. And if you wake up in the middle of the night with the desire to drink some water and go to the toilet, then it is much easier to force yourself to wait until the morning than, like space ghosts, to fly half asleep along the corridors of the ISS.

Yes, no one on the ISS is particularly interested in whether you are a night owl or a lark. Only those “birds” who are ready to go to bed on command and get up at the alarm clock at any time of the year are accepted as cosmonauts.

06:00–07:30. Personal time, hygiene procedures, breakfast

Once every three days, astronauts put on fresh underwear. Not in space washing machines, that’s why shorts and T-shirts are taken into orbit in just such quantities. After use, all “disposable” clothing is transferred to the Russian space “truck” “Progress”, in which it will burn in the dense layers of the atmosphere. Shirts are changed once a month, socks - once a week.

No one has canceled the rules of hygiene for astronauts, so in the morning everyone washes, shave, brushes their teeth and even washes their hair with a special composition that was once developed for hospital patients who cannot use the shower. Wiping with wet wipes and other procedures are not very convenient, but are required for a confined space inhabited by three to eight people at a time.

07:30–07:45. Discussion with the Earth about the work of the coming day

As a rule, the schedule of work and experiments at the station is approved in advance, but every morning a short discussion is held, at which urgent tasks are set and changes in the schedule are discussed. Work week on the ISS lasts five and a half days, the remaining day and a half are considered weekends. Weekends do not mean that absolutely no work is being done, it’s just that no planned experiments or serious work are scheduled during this time.

07:49–09:45. Day job

Residents of village houses know what they require permanent work all the time. Either the hinges on the door need to be replaced, or the gutter needs to be repaired, or the porch needs to be touched up. The ISS can most easily be compared to such a house, only larger and much more complex. Almost all systems require regular testing, inspection and repair. Only on Earth do jokes about a clogged space toilet cause many smiles. This is a normal routine for astronauts.

Among the work carried out at the station, three main directions can be distinguished. The first is checking all systems, repairing them, or routinely replacing replaceable components. American astronauts even joked that working on the ISS was like a giant space car service: All systems require filter changes and regular testing.

Second type of work - This is loading and unloading. With space cargo ships Several hundredweights of food, water and equipment for experiments arrive. Unloading each of these “trucks” turns into a long and uninteresting task - You need to move all the boxes and packaging one by one to the desired compartment and secure them there. You can’t just throw food into the technological compartment and leave it to fly in conditions of reduced gravity: then you simply won’t be able to find anything. Space teaches you to be careful.

The third type of work activity is conducting scientific experiments. Most of all, this is similar to quests given from Earth. Schedule of events scientific works for Russian cosmonauts can be read on the page of the Federal Space Agency. Most of them sound more like forfeits assigned to the loser.

December 9, 2016"Algometry". Study of pain sensitivity in humans during space flight. Registration of PBP (pain sensitivity threshold) by the method of mechanical stimulation using the “Algometer” installation in the strain- and thermal-algometry mode. Entering data onto the “TTA - Data” storage medium. BI1/BI2 - 1 hour 20 minutes.

Let's decipher. One flight engineer hurt another for eighty minutes and recorded the results. All in the name of science! Experiments may sound or look funny, but they are a very important part of space life. Only with the help of dozens of such experiments will scientists on Earth be able to better answer the question: How does space influence a person? What needs to be done to ensure that staying on the ISS does not negatively affect the health of astronauts?

09:45–13:00. Sports: exercise bike, treadmill, strength exercises

It doesn't matter if it's a working day or a weekend, sporting events cannot be cancelled. Faced with muscle atrophy, it was decided that the only effective prevention could be constant sports activity. Therefore, on the ISS sports is given from two to three hours in a day. But within a few hours after returning from a flight that lasted several months, the astronauts are able to walk.

Due to disruption of recovery processes, on average, one and a half percent of astronauts’ bone tissue is lost for each month in orbit. The lower vertebrae, pelvis and hips are especially affected. Bones become fragile, the processes occurring are similar to osteoporosis. It's still unclear Does prolonged exposure to weightlessness cause irreparable damage to the body? To combat the effects of atrophy, the ISS has two treadmills to which a person is attached by shock-absorbing cables.

13:00–14:00. Dinner

The era of tubes of space food is forever a thing of the past. There are three types of food on the ISS: packages of cooked wet food (they just need to be heated), dehydrated food (it is poured with boiling water), and non-perishable food (sealed and eaten as is). Astronauts have also successfully grown plants in microgravity, but we are still a long way from large-scale crop harvests in space.

The worst situation in orbit is with fresh vegetables and fruits. Sometimes they are sent to astronauts a little at a time, but this is too expensive and ineffective. Although very tasty. It was the Progress MS-04 that was involved in the accident that was carrying a cargo of New Year's tangerines to the ISS, which, alas, did not reach their recipients.

Breakfast and dinner are not separately allocated in the schedule, and the astronauts snatch personal time for them, both in the morning and in the evening.

15:00–16:30. Continued work

As a rule, astronauts work in pairs or threes so as not to interfere with each other. Most of the jobs are not only difficult, but also require serious preparation. As a result, it turns out that simply going somewhere and taking equipment for an experiment turns into a very time-consuming task. Astronauts have to unpack the equipment, prepare it for work, then carefully pack and attach it.

One of the basic rules of life at the station: not a single thing should be left out of place. So if you see something flying in the video, rest assured that it was made exclusively for filming. Afterwards, things will take their place in special nets and trunks.

16:30–17:40. Connection with the Earth. Personal medical and psychological consultation

The best way to prevent possible diseases and illnesses is regular prevention. Almost every day, astronauts talk about their well-being to their attending physicians, talk with a psychologist who closely monitors their state of mind. The fact that the most prepared people get to the ISS does not mean that they cannot get sick.

17:40–18:35. Public relations work

The best way to show most people the benefits of working on the International Space Station is to provide regular reminders. Most of the videos created by astronauts in orbit are part of the work process. They try to make them interesting and educational.

Also, astronauts regularly have to communicate, either with federal channels, and even with small space communication points, of which there are quite a few around the world. For example, in St. Petersburg such a point is equipped even in one of the large shopping centers TRC "Raduga", located on Cosmonauts Avenue. There is a circle of space enthusiasts working there, and from time to time this communication center gets a few minutes to communicate with the astronauts to ask questions.

18:35–19:30. Preparing for the next day's work. Discussion with the Earth about the work of the past day

Before reporting to Earth that most of the work has been completed, the cosmonauts once again check whether all things are secured and whether all station parameters are in operating mode. As at the beginning of work, several control centers on Earth have to talk about the past day. NASA, MCC, European ESA, Japanese JAXA - all of them participate in maintaining the performance of the ISS, and therefore add their tasks to the astronauts’ schedule.

19:30–21:30. Personal time before bed

This includes dinner and the opportunity to do something personal. Now there are fewer problems with personal communication. There is a stable channel between the Earth and the ISS, and there is always the opportunity to write a letter to your family from your personal laptop, post a photo from the station to the social network Instagram, or simply read the news.

Cosmonauts can ask the Control Center to broadcast television programs to them, but due to the heavy workload this happens infrequently. State elections, opening Olympic Games, finals of major sports championships. Each of the astronauts has his own laptop with movies, e-books and a player with music. Without these little things, life in orbit would become very difficult and joyless.

You can wait until the weekend when you have more time. It can be spent on making beautiful photo from the panoramic module "Dome". Or just look from above at one of the 32 sunsets and sunrises that the inhabitants of the ISS manage to see during the day.

21:30–06:00. Dream

Good night. It's time to get into the bags and buckle up. Tomorrow will be another difficult, but very important day.

Information programs often describe scientific experiments conducted at orbital stations. At the same time, a significant part of the audience forgets that astronauts are people too and have the same needs as everyone else. If for short-term flights hygiene problems are easily resolved, then staying in orbit for several months requires careful consideration of this issue.

Today, the answer to the question of how astronauts wash themselves in space is simple and unambiguous: not at all. At the same time, they comply with all hygiene standards. The Mir and Salyut 7 orbital stations had showers on board, which allowed the astronauts to wash themselves. However, the procedure itself was somewhat unusual, and the time required to prepare the cabin and subsequently clean it was unreasonably long.

How astronauts washed themselves in space

Previously, showers like this were used

The lack of gravity leaves its mark on all hygiene procedures in space, but it should be noted that this is not a sanatorium, but a place for important research. It is problematic not only to wash and brush your teeth, but also to cut your hair or nails.

A modern approach to hygiene issues in space

The use of a leave-in shower gel, which is a disinfectant composition reminiscent of slightly soapy water, allows you to keep your body clean during a long stay on the orbital station. Leave-in shampoo is intended for washing hair. All formulations do not contain alcohol, since when it evaporates and enters the regeneration system, it will turn recycled water into vodka.

The procedure for washing hair in space, described by American astronaut Karen Nyberg, who has long hair, very simple:

• First, a small amount of warm water from a special bag is applied to the hair;
• Then a small amount of dry shampoo is spread over the head using a comb;
• Hair is dried with a towel. This ends the hair washing.

Russian cosmonauts use a specially developed non-foaming shampoo “Aelita” to wash their hair, applied to their hair using a napkin, and then simply dry their hair with a towel. The body is cleansed using wipes soaked in a special gel.

Developed special gels for shaving and edible toothpastes used in zero gravity conditions with a minimum amount of water. Female astronauts are allowed to take a limited amount of cosmetics with them. All this, as well as the mandatory change of clothes every three days, allow astronauts to maintain body hygiene at the proper level.