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Astronauts will be able to be drink their own urine during space walks thanks to new groundbreaking suit

Home> News> Science

Published 12:52 13 Jul 2024 GMT+1

Astronauts will be able to be drink their own urine during space walks thanks to new groundbreaking suit

The new suit is reportedly inspired by the 'stillsuits' featured in sci-fi film Dune

Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper

Picture this, you're alone in the dark depths of space and desperately needing a drink.

What would your preferred beverage be? A cold glass of water? A refreshing beer? Or what about foregoing those and supping on your own urine instead?

Well in the not-too-distant future, this idea could become a reality for NASA astronauts as Cornell University researchers are currently working on an innovative new type of spacesuit.

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Dealing with regular bodily functions are a little more complicated when you're hundreds of miles away from the surface of the earth.

For you and I, dealing with bodily needs such as passing urine/faeces or keeping adequately hydrated are pretty straightforward.

But things aren't as easy when you're out in the depths of space.

While the International Space Station has already come up with a method to harness sweat, urine and breath and create drinking water, astronauts who venture outside for maintenance or space walks are left wearing what is essentially an adult nappy.

The familiar puffy white spacesuits feature a maximum absorbency garment which works by absorbing the wearer's bodily fluids, meaning they are able to go to the bathroom while wearing them.

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The garments can collect up to one litre of urine and 75 grams of fecal matter for the wearer.

Currently astronauts have to wear a type of nappy during spacewalk expeditions. (Getty Stock Images)
Currently astronauts have to wear a type of nappy during spacewalk expeditions. (Getty Stock Images)

Now understandably your options are limited in space, but spending hours working while sat in a suit of your own waste is not a nice thought. It's also common for the garments to leak, with astronauts even reporting being unable to tell if fluid in their suit is sweat or urine.

Other astronauts have even reported suffering from urinary tract infections after wearing the suit. Grim.

With this in mind, researchers at Cornell University have created a prototype for a new spacesuit which can turn urine into viable drinking water, like the stillsuits used by the Fremen in Denis Villeneuve's Dune films.

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The suit will work by having a moulded silicone collection cup fitted around the wearer's genitals which then connects to moisture-activated vacuum pump.

Activated by the wearer urinating, the pump is connected to a filtration system which can purify urine in around five minutes, with an 87 percent efficiency rate.

This new design is the real-life equivalent of the stillsuits worn by Dune characters. (Claire Walter/ Frontiers in Space Technology)
This new design is the real-life equivalent of the stillsuits worn by Dune characters. (Claire Walter/ Frontiers in Space Technology)

"If you’re giving NASA billions of dollars, you’d think they wouldn’t keep the diaper," Sofia Etlin, Cornell researcher and co-designer of the suit, said, adding that 'spacesuits as we know it are being reimagined'.

"Even in the absence of a large desert planet, like in Dune, this is something that could be better for astronauts," Prof Christopher Mason, of Weill Cornell Medicine, the study’s senior author, added.

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Researchers are hoping to recruit volunteers to test the suit out later this year, with the aim of NASA being able to use them in future Artemis missions, which hopes to eventually allow humans to land on Mars.

Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Images

Topics: Science, Space

Brenna Cooper
Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper is a journalist at LADbible. She graduated from the University of Sheffield with a degree in History, followed by an NCTJ accredited masters in Journalism. She began her career as a freelance writer for Digital Spy, where she wrote about all things TV, film and showbiz. Her favourite topics to cover are music, travel and any bizarre pop culture.

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