Astronomy Blog

Space Loo

In pretty much every interview of astronauts I've ever seen on kid's TV shows, the question of going to the toilet always pops up. In free fall, when gravity isn't being helpful, the process needs some technological help. Over at Astropixie, Amanda shares a video discussing how astronauts use

the toilet in space. The practice toilets even have the added feature of an "alignment camera" to ensure accurate "docking".

Back in 2006 I was lucky enough to visit the amazing science museum in Tokyo and one of the exhibits was a mock-up of parts of the International Space Station. I was pleased that they'd included the 'little astronauts room' complete with restraints, foot straps and assorted tubes.

Another of the rooms looked like a rather cramped quarters with photographs on the wall and some bedtime reading. Perhaps Soichi Noguchi sleeps somewhere like this.