ISS piss recycler packs up again on eve of Atlantis visit
The International Space Station's buggy urine-recycling unit has packed up again, according to reports. With the shuttle Atlantis due to visit shortly, temporarily boosting the number of people at the orbiting outpost to 12, it's feared that areas of the station may begin to fill up with containers of astronaut piss awaiting …
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Rats in Space
That's nothing. I've recycled countless pints of rats piss in any number of pubs in London.
Eh!
Nobody said anything about rat piss when I started Astronought school.
Flogging lifeless equine
This was funny in the very first article. Please let it go.
Not only do ISS astronauts...
... drink their own and their crewmates' recycled sweat, breath-moisture and urine - they also drink rat piss on occasion
You mean just like everyone who lives on the planet who are drinking water that's been through uncountable bodies over the millennia...
Completely pointless?
You lose 90% of the water you drink to respiration and sweat, probably more in a very dry environment like the ISS.
Spending money, effort, payload on recycling the most difficult/toxic/unpleasant 10% seems completely pointless. Unless the purpose of Nasa is to develop useful new technology for manned space flight - which is unlikely, or the makers of this needed a government contract.
Lateral Thinking
"The rest of the ISS water-recovery system, which harvests moistening goodness from sweat in the station's atmosphere, is said to be working fine."
The solution is obvious..............spray the urine in a fine mist into the station's atmosphere.
What was that you said?
Spanish astronauts
Better be careful about inviting anyone from Extremadura. Who knows what those wankers would recycle.
A full complement of 72 rats?
I've never heard about the rats before. Butterflies yes, spiders, silk worms yes, but rats no. Were they secret? More information please.
Rat piss
"they also drink rat piss on occasion"
Also known as "American beer" (not counting Samuel Adams, obviously).
And what about the dogs milk? Keeps forever, does dogs milk.
@frank ly
Brilliant!
But you owe me a keyboard, the coffee didn't become an aerosol.
"Top NASA piss-extraction experts?"
Ahh, the pleasures of a government contract. What wonders of career development are next?
Hopefully, The Reg won't dig any deeper into the ISS documentation to discover any further occupational malapropisms.
C'mon, Lewis.
This is old.
We all drink recycled piss, every single day. That's every man, woman, child, animal, bird, reptile, fish, and any other critter, single-celled and up, that lives on this big, blue, dampish rock.
Why do you (seem to) have issues with reality? Perhaps you have personal issues dealing with urine and yourself? This really isn't the place to go into that kinda thing ... And quite frankly, it's kinda disturbing that you seem to have a need to be so public about it. Seek help.
But aren't all US government contractors
top experts in extracting the piss?
It just goes to prove...
...that they're not going to Mars or anywhere else anytime soon. No way to get emergency repairs or supplies. Humans need an environment that can supply large amounts of raw materials and accept waste in return.
A reminder of history's pioneers
At least they get to purify it these days, unlike the hardy sailors of yesteryear:
"Is Captain Rum joining us for this bring-a-sample party, or is he going to sit this one out?"
"Oh no, he's been swigging his for ages. He says he likes it. Actually, come to think of it, he started before the water ran out."
Re: Flogging lifeless equine
It'll cease to be funny as soon as this hapless collection of alleged Rocket Scientists with their multi-gazillion dollar budget manage to build a basic water recyling unit that works for more than five minutes at a stretch.
Until then, I for one will continue to smirk at the continuing antics of the Heath Robinson Plumbing company in space.
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