HOUSTON —. Sometimes when you're on a road trip and need a shower, nothing's going to get in your way.

That seems to be what happened Friday (April 3), when astronaut Victor Glover, the pilot of NASA's Artemis 2 mission to the moon, suddenly took off his shirt in full view of a live camera feed on the Orion spacecraft after his daily workout.

Mission Control's reaction was priceless. The video feed suddenly cut out, replaced by a view inside the White Flight Control Room here at NASA's Johnson Space Center while flight controllers prepared a response that sounded a bit sheepish.

"Integrity, courtesy call," astronaut Chris Birch, Artemis 2 capsule communicator, radioed from Mission Control a few minutes later. "Not knowing your preference, we did have video of Victor, which we stopped from going out on our PAO stream." (PAO is NASA's abbreviation for Public Affairs Office.)

"We appreciate that, Chris. We were definitely good with the go out, but we definitely understand if you want to restrict," Artemis 2 commander Reid Wiseman radioed back. "No problem either way."

Birch smiled and said she'd add it to the growing list of crew preferences, and the moment passed.

A short while later, video from the interior of Orion resumed, showing some of the Artemis 2 astronauts wrapping up lunch as a shirtless Glover finished "showering" with a small towel. He had just completed his daily 30-minute workout using Orion's new flywheel exercise device. You can see the full video at the top of this page.

"NASA astronaut Victor Glover, having completed his workout, cleaning up in space," a NASA commentator said. "Obviously we do not have showers aboard the Orion spacecraft."

The episode, while amusing, offered an unusually intimate glimpse into the daily life of an astronaut in space — in this case, one headed for the moon.

Glover, Wiseman (both NASA astronauts) and Artemis 2 mission specialists Christina Koch of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency launched toward the moon on April 1 on NASA's first crewed lunar mission since 1972. They will become the farthest-ever humans from Earth when they loop around the moon on April 6 to begin their trip home. The 10-day mission is due to return to Earth on April 10.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — There was a little potty problem on NASA's Artemis 2 moon ship.

Within hours of launching four astronauts on NASA's Artemis 2 mission around the moon, its crew reported a glitch in what may have been the most anticipated new creature comfort of their Orion spacecraft: their space toilet.

Artemis 2 mission specialist Christina Koch noted an issue starting up part of the Orion capsule's toilet — which NASA calls the Universal Waste Management System — that deals with urine collection.

"The toilet fan is reported to be jammed," NASA spokesperson Gary Jordan said during live mission commentary. "Now the ground teams are coming up with instructions on how to get into the fan and clear that area to revive the toilet for the mission."

Norm Knight, NASA's director of flight operations, told reporters here at the Kennedy Space Center that the malfunction was due to a controller issue on the toilet. But NASA confirmed astronauts could still use the space commode to poop, just not urinate, though engineers were working to restore it to full service.

"In the meantime they're getting their contingency — their backup waste management capabilities specifically for urine," Jordan said. "The fecal collection of the toilet, that specific capability, can still be used with the waste management system aboard Orion."

A few hours after Koch reported the toilet issue to Mission Control, flight controllers walked her through a series of steps to try and fix it.

"Houston, Integrity, good checkout," Koch said after trying the fix.

Then, some relieving news.

"Happy to report that toilet is go for use," Mission Control's Capcom Amy Dill radioed Koch. "We do recommend letting the system get to operating speed before donating fluid, and then letting it run a little bit after donation."

"We are cheers all around, and we will do that," Koch replied.

It does sound like at least one crewmember used a contingency bag before the fix. Koch reported that one CCU, or Collapsible Contingency Urinal, was full and needed to be emptied overboard. Dill radioed up instructions on the best time for that dump, and all was well.

That may be a relief for the Artemis 2 astronauts, in more ways than one. NASA's Apollo astronauts did not have the luxury of a toilet when they flew to the moon in the 1960s and 1970s. They peed and pooped in plastic bags, then stowed the solid waste and vented urine overboard into space.

The toilet aboard Orion is a smaller, more compact version of the bathrooms on the International Space Station. It's built into the floor of the Orion capsule and allows Artemis 2 astronauts some privacy while taking care of business. While the Orion spacecraft is larger than NASA's Apollo capsules, it's still cramped — the interior has been compared to that of two SUVs.

"The one place that we can go on our mission where we can feel like we're alone for a moment," Artemis 2 mission specialist Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency said of the toilet in a video overview.

The toilet is technically known as the "hygiene bay" and has about as much room as the bathroom on a passenger jet, according to Lockheed Martin, which built the Orion spacecraft for NASA. It's part of Orion's systems to support an astronaut crew — NASA's uncrewed Artemis 1 test flight in 2022 didn't carry one — but there are backup systems aboard, like those Apollo-era bags, if they're needed.

The Artemis 2 astronauts use foot restraints to help stay in place while using the toilet, which uses airflow to draw solid waste away from the body and into a collection device. For urine, each astronaut has his or her own personal funnel to use, with a fan that draws the urine into a tank.

"That's absolutely an important component on this ship," Blaine Brown, Lockheed Martin's director of Orion spacecraft mechanical systems, told Space.com in an interview. "You can call it a luxury. Some call it a necessity."

NASA's Artemis 2 mission is a historic test flight to send astronauts on a 10-day trip around the moon. It's the first crewed flight of the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System rocket that launched them on their way.

The mission is the vanguard of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to land astronauts on the moon by 2028 and begin a permanent moon base by 2032.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 12:15 a.m. EDT on April 2 to reflect the successful repair of the toilet on Artemis 2's Orion spacecraft.

"Do it in the suit."

Those were the disconcerting words that the first American in space, Alan Shepherd, heard on May 5, 1961, when he advised the launch pad team he needed to urinate. Shepherd did as instructed, urinating in his spacesuit, short-circuiting his electronic biosensors. 

Shepherd's spacesuit hadn't been outfitted with a urine collection system because his mission had not been expected to last long enough for him to need to urinate. 

NASA didn't take any such chances with John Glenn's mission to space during the first Mercury orbital flight on February 20, 1962. Glenn's spacesuit was equipped with the first functioning urine collection system, a wearable containment belt, latex roll-on cuff, plastic tube, valve and clamp, and a plastic collection bag, which would inform systems used by male astronauts throughout the space shuttle program. In fact, Glenn's urine collection system is so historic it has been on display to the public at the National Air and Space Museum since 1976. 

Related: This is the astronaut's video guide to going to the bathroom in space

Since the Mercury orbital flights and the space shuttle program, stays in space have become longer, with astronauts at the International Space Station (ISS) staying for up to six months. And the new era of extended space stays is upon us, meaning astronauts who must wear clothes for long periods can't be walking around in damp or soiled underwear or attached to rubber hoses. This has led to a drive to design and build space toilets to perform the most basic of human needs in space while considering utility and comfort. 

How do toilets work in space?

Toilets come in an array of forms here on Earth, depending on culture and geographical location. But one single principle applies to all toilets on terra firma, whether a hole in the ground or a golden throne with a built-in bidet, waste disposal hinges on gravity, Associate Professor of Geology, University at Buffalo Tracy Gregg wrote in the Conversation.

The microgravity experienced in space can make the process of disposing of human waste more tricky and even dangerous. The lack of gravity means waste could float from space-based toilers, which would not only be harmful to astronauts' health, but if this occurred aboard the ISS or another space station, free-floating waste could damage sensitive equipment. 

This means rather than relying on gravity to dispose of waste, toilets on the ISS and on spacecraft use suction and airflow. According to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the weak gravity of space means, as well as using suction, that astronauts on the space shuttle have to strap themselves to the toilet as they go about their business. 

The microgravity is counteracted by a wealth of handholds and footholds that ensure an astronaut won't drift off the toilet at a critical moment. While urinating, astronauts hold a suction funnel to their skin to prevent leaks. When the toilet lid is lifted to pass solids, suctioning begins immediately to reduce odors, according to Gregg. 

What happens to the waste?

Solid waste passed into toilets in space is sucked into garbage bags that are then placed in airtight containers. Toilet paper, wipes, and gloves are also placed in these containers. These containers are loaded into the cargo ships that bring resources from Earth to the crew of the ISS. These ships are then dropped back into the atmosphere of Earth, where they burn up permanently, disposing of astronauts' solid waste. Some feces is freeze-dried and returned to Earth for testing. 

Disposal of astronauts' liquid waste on the ISS is more complicated. Water is such a valuable resource in space that urine can't just be allowed to be destroyed in the atmosphere. Each crewmember of the ISS needs about 1 gallon (3.8 liters) of water each day for drinking, food preparation, and hygiene uses like brushing teeth. Urine is collected by toilets on the ISS and is passed to the Water Recovery System, which also collects sweat and moisture in expelled breath. This is then forwarded to the Water Processor Assembly (WPA), which then turns it into drinkable water.

"We recycle about 90% of all water-based liquids on the space station, including urine and sweat," NASA astronaut Jessica Meir said. "What we try to do aboard the space station is mimic elements of Earth's natural water cycle to reclaim water from the air. And when it comes to our urine on ISS, today's coffee is tomorrow's coffee!"

Currently, feces isn't recycled to extract wastewater, but this is something that NASA is working on.

Advancements in space toilets

The first space toilet was designed for use in NASA's Skylab orbiting platform, the first space station, in 1973. The toilet was little more than a hole in the wall attached to a bag and fan that astronauts defecated in during 1973 and 1974 missions, heat-drying feces. 

The ISS toilets were first designed in 2000, with all astronauts having to urinate while standing up and defecate while strapped to the toilet and their rears vacuum sealed to the seat. Gregg explained this didn't didn't work very well and was hard to keep clean.

Thus, in 2018, NASA developed its first new space toilet for decades, taking astronaut feedback about existing facilities into account. The result was a titanium unit called Universal Waste Management System (UWMS) that cost $23 million to develop. The toilet, which was sent to the ISS in 2020, is 28 inches (71 centimeters) tall, making it around half the size of the Russian-constructed toilets at the space station. On the ISS, toilets are located in the Zvezda, Nauka, and Tranquility units. 

The comparatively small size of the UWMS space toilet is a result of the fact that is designed to be fitted into the Orion space capsule, the crew vehicle of the Artemis mission. As part of the Artemis III mission, the Orion capsule will carry the first woman to the moon. 

Fittingly, while previous space toilets were outfitted specifically for men, making them uncomfortable and inconvenient for women to use, the UWMS toilet has been designed to be better suited to women. Johnson Space Center's Melissa McKinley headed up the project and explained that the toilet seat had been tilted and raised to make it easier to use while seated. The newer toilet has also been designed with elongated and scooped-out funnels that allow astronauts to urinate and defecate at the same time. McKinley added that prior to this, astronauts had been forced to choose one function at a time. 

Space hygiene FAQs

Additional resources

European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti takes viewers on a tour of the ISS explaining the complicated and slightly intimidating toilet system. In this video, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata explains the water recovery system of the ISS, which recycles urine and wastewater into clean water. The infographics Show explains how NASA's $23 million toilet works.  

Bibliography

How do astronauts go to the bathroom in space? The Conversation, [2021], [https://theconversation.com/how-do-astronauts-go-to-the-bathroom-in-space-153370]

Life Support Subsystems, NASA Johnson Space Center, [accessed 02/09/24], [https://www.nasa.gov/reference/jsc-life-support-subsystems/]

Boldly Go! NASA's New Space Toilet Offers More Comfort, Improved Efficiency for Deep Space Missions, NASA, [accessed 02/09/24], [https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/boldly-go-nasas-new-space-toilet-offers-more-comfort-improved-efficiency-for-deep-space-missions.]

How do toilets work in space? JAXA, [accessed 02/09/24], [https://iss.jaxa.jp/kids/en/life/04.html]

H. Hollins, Forgotten hardware: how to urinate in a spacesuit, Advances in Physiology Education, [2013], [https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/advan.00175.2012]

NASA engineers are working on a new spacesuit that includes a long-term waste-disposal system — effectively, a built-in toilet. Such a system hasn't been a part of NASA spacesuits since the Apollo era, and the new waste-disposal system will likely have a lot in common with those used in the 1970s.

The new suits, called the Orion Crew Survival Systems Suits (OCSSS), will be worn by astronauts on NASA's next-generation human spacecraft, Orion, which will be able to carry humans well beyond low Earth orbit. While the vehicle isn't big enough to support a nine-month trip to Mars, Orion could carry humans around the moon and back. 

Like the space shuttle before it, Orion will be equipped with a toilet, but NASA is making contingency plans in case of emergencies, including the possibility that the Orion capsule depressurizes and the astronauts have to remain in their suits to survive. In fact, the agency wants astronauts to be able to survive in their suits for up to six days — meaning the men and women would have to be able to do things like eat, urinate and defecate without taking them off. [How to Use the Bathroom in Space]

"That is a really long time," Kirstyn Johnson, a NASA engineer who is leading the design of the internal systems for the Orion launch and landing suit, told Space.com. It's a long time to be in such a small space under the best of conditions, "but then to live in a suit with all of your waste right by you for that long of a time, it could get gnarly pretty quickly."

Johnson and her team have to try and avoid potentially gnarly outcomes, and keep astronauts safe on humanity's return to the moon.[The Evolution of the Spacesuit in Photos]

Gender issues

Since the start of the space shuttle era, spacesuits haven't been required to provide long-term bathroom solutions. There are two main types of suits worn by astronauts today: flight suits for launch and entry; and the giant, puffy white space suits (extravehicular mobility unit) used in extravehicular activities (EVAs, or spacewalks). Both those suits come equipped with what are called maximum absorbency garments (MAG's) — which are effectively diapers — because astronauts have no reason to remain in the suits for more than about 10 hours at a time (often much less). Once out of the spacesuit, astronauts use the onboard toilets. [Spacesuit Chic: Cosmic Fashion Evolution Explained (Infographic)]

A big advantage of the diapers is that they're simple to put on and take off, Johnson said.

"[The MAG] may not work 100 percent of the time — you might have leakage — but it gets the job done without us having to put too much effort into it up front in terms of design and certifying it," Johnson said.  

The MAG system might sound unpleasant, but consider that there were no toilets on any of the spacecraft that carried humans to the moon. For urine collection, the all-male crewmembers wore condom catheters that fit over the penis like a condom, with a tube at the end to collect the liquid, which was pulled into a bag attached to the outside of the suit. The astronauts also had an external urine-collection system that was essentially the same as the one built into the suit. The Apollo astronauts defecated into fecal collection bags that were part of their flight suit. This system was so prone to failure that the crewmembers were specifically placed on a high-protein diet to reduce the amount of waste they produced. The astronauts were also responsible for sealing and disposing of the filled bags. The longest Apollo mission was 12 days.

In late 2016, NASA announced the "Space Poop Challenge," an open call for designs for a better waste-disposal system for spacesuits. (Despite the title, Johnson said the call was for both urine- and fecal-management systems.) 

While the competition did reveal new designs, they would all require additional development to figure out how to integrate them into a suit, Johnson said. There was "nothing we could use fairly quickly in the Orion program." 

So for now, "we're kind of gravitating back to what astronauts used during Apollo," Johnson said of the Orion spacesuit system. 

The suits will include a fecal bag that is very similar to those used in the Apollo suits, and, for men, they will also use condom catheters, which remain the simplest, most straightforward approach, Johnson said. [Why Space Travel Can Be Absolutely Disgusting]

But one glaring problem that Apollo and subsequent human space missions never solved was how to make an in-suit, urine-collection systems for women. By the time NASA welcomed its first class of women astronauts in 1978, the space shuttle program was only a few years away from its first launch, so the female astronauts used the diaper system and onboard toilet. (In 1981, NASA engineers filed a patent for a urine-collection device for women that included a vaginal insert to keep urine out; it was never utilized in operational space suits, however.)

In microgravity, liquids don't flow the way they do on Earth; they tend to glom together and "stick" to surfaces. So, for example, if someone cries in space, the tears will form bubbles that "stick" to the person's eyes or eyelashes, rather than float away. The toilet on the space station uses a vacuum system to pull fluids away from the body. It includes a personal attachment for each astronaut. 

"For females, it gets a little harder, obviously, because of the geometry of a person's body, and then you have to deal with issues like pubic hair," Johnson said of the in-suit system. Pubic hair poses a challenge because liquid tends to glom onto it in microgravity. Johnson said the main concern is liquid lingering in that area and causing a skin breakdown. Plus, the system also has to be secured in place (the condom catheter is essentially its own attachment mechanism), and pubic hair can also make it difficult to use a sticky attachment mechanism. Johnson and her colleagues also have to take into consideration things like how the waste-disposal system can operate while a woman is on her period. 

While it's possible that some of these problems could be avoided if female astronauts were to remove their pubic hair and go on birth control (which can reduce the occurrence of periods), Johnson said that's beyond what NASA would reasonably ask of its astronauts. 

"You want a design that any normal, functioning woman should be able to use without putting additional requirements on them," Johnson said. "So you have to design something that can basically encompass most of their public hair, while also protecting them from infections like [urinary tract infections] without fecal matter getting in the way. Stuff like that."

An external vacuum system could be part of the solution; the suit would have to have a vacuum system that was not large or power-intensive. So the suit needs something more practical. Ideally, the natural difference in pressure between the suit and the surrounding atmosphere could serve to pull material away from the astronaut, Johnson said, but a vacuum system could be more reliable. 

The female urine-disposal system isn't fully developed yet, and some aspects of it are proprietary, Johnson said, so she can't release all the details. But the general design is similar to the tube system used by female fighter pilots to relieve themselves during long flights, or members of the military who may not be able to stop a task to relieve themselves. The device essentially has to be the size of a sanitary napkin, to encompass an entire area. [Showering in Space: Astronaut Home Video Shows Off 'Hygiene Corner']

Not just a space problem

While this might seem like a uniquely space-based problem, Johnson said she was surprised to discover the number of technologies that exist on Earth for helping people relieve themselves without having to go to the toilet. Many of those technologies are aimed at people who are physically incontinent, but there are other uses for these devices as well, particularly for women. 

"You start looking at the camping industry, and you start seeing a lot of these portable urination devices that you can carry around with you so you don't have to squat in the middle of the forest. [There are] these paper bags that you can take to a concert and women pull out of their purse so they don't have to sit on a disgusting toilet," Johnson said. "It was almost a revelation for me as a female to see all these products — like, who knew these existed? And it's kind of taboo to talk about but it's interesting, because it feeds into stuff like this that we're trying to do with spacesuits."

Follow Calla Cofield @callacofield. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

Staying clean in space is a challenge, something that Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti knows well after spending several months on the International Space Station (ISS).

In two videos, Cristoforetti showed off the shower aboard the station, a spot that she called the "hygiene corner," as well as one of the two toilets.

She cited several challenges to keeping clean in space, including the lack of space, limited water and the effects of microgravity. [The Scoop on Space Poop: How Astronauts Go Potty]

"This is the place where I wash, brush my teeth or, after workouts, take a shower ISS-style," Cristoforetti said in a video produced by the European Space Agency.

To stay clean, most astronauts request a Russian-made toiletry pouch among their personal items. The pouch includes toothpaste, a toothbrush and deodorant — enough to last six months, the typical stay aboard the station. Each astronaut is also assigned two towels (one large and one small) every week, and a smaller wet towel every two days.

Working with limited water

As water is limited, the astronauts fill a pouch at a nearby water station to the temperature they like, Cristoforetti said. There are two main methods to clean oneself. One is to drape water on the body part you'd like to wash, and the other is to use a towel. The astronaut said the first method is more enjoyable, but takes more time to accomplish.

As for brushing one's teeth, there is the problem of figuring out what to do with the toothpaste at the end, since there is no sink on board. Some astronauts swallow (the toothpaste sent up there is designed for that), but Cristoforetti takes the other option.

"I really don't like to do that, so I spit it out," she said. "It's not the most elegant thing, but you have to do what you have to do."

Cristoforetti also demonstrated how to wash hair. She squirted a bit of rinseless shampoo into her hair, lathered up and then dried with a towel.

Waste management

With six people on board the station, working toilet facilities are essential to prevent a big mess from happening. Whether you are about to do "number one" or "number two," Cristoforetti said in a separate video, the principle to stay clean relies on suction.

For urine, the astronauts use a large hose with a cup at the end. The urine gets put into a purification system that eventually turns it into drinking water.

As for defecation, a solid-waste container pairs with the toilet Cristoforetti showed; it is changed every 10 days or so, assuming three crewmembers are using it. There is a "seat" available on it, but as people float in microgravity, most astronauts prefer to lift the seat and use the opening underneath.

"When we are done with our business, we close the bag and we push it down into the solid-waste container, and of course, as a courtesy to the next person, we put a new bag inside," Cristoforetti said.

While Cristoforetti did not mention it on camera, once a solid-waste container is filled, it is put aside as trash. Generally, the solid waste is then placed in a Russian Progress cargo spacecraft to burn up naturally in the Earth's atmosphere when the spacecraft leaves the station.

Follow Elizabeth Howell @howellspace. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.