Future space flights on the moon could allow humans to do longer spacewalks because of a spacesuit inspired by science fiction that can transform urine into drinking water.
In five minutes, the prototype collects, cleans, and delivers urine to the astronaut via a drinking tube. It is fashioned like the Dune “stillsuits.”
By the end of the decade, the suit’s creators want to include it into NASA’s Artemis program, which focuses on discovering how to survive and thrive for lengthy periods of time on other worlds.
Sofia Etlin, a researcher at Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell University and co-designer of the suit, says that the design includes a vacuum-based external catheter that leads to a combined forward-reverse osmosis unit. This provides a continuous supply of potable water with multiple safety mechanisms to ensure astronauts’ well-being.
There is now just one liter of water accessible in the drink packs of astronauts. This is not enough for the lengthier lunar spacewalks that are planned; they may last up to 10 hours, or even up to 24 hours in an emergency.
By the end of the decade, the suit’s creators want to include it into NASA’s Artemis program, which focuses on discovering how to survive and thrive for lengthy periods of time on other worlds.
Furthermore, complaints about the current waste management solution, known as the maximum absorbency garment, or MAG, which is effectively an adult diaper, have existed for a long time.Some astronauts have reported developing UTIs while others have restricted their food and drink intake prior to spacewalks due to the clothing’s uncleanliness, discomfort, and tendency to leak.
A silicone collecting cup that fits around the genitalia is the component of the proposed stillsuit system; the sizes and forms of the cups vary for men and women. This is covered with an undergarment made of many layers of flexible cloth. The instant the astronaut begins to pee, a moisture-activated vacuum pump attached to the silicon cup activates automatically.
The collected urine is sent into a filtering machine, which turns it into water with an 87% efficiency rate.
The apparatus employs an osmosis system to extract water from feces and a pump to remove water from salt.
500ml of urine may be collected and purified in five minutes or less. The electrolyte-enriched filtered water may be returned to the astronaut as an energy drink after deployment. The system’s dimensions—38 cm by 23 cm by 23 cm and its weight—were found to be sufficiently tiny and light to be carried on the back of a spacesuit.
The company plans to recruit 100 volunteers in New York in the fall to test the system’s use and comfort.
