How Do Bathrooms Work in Space? | StarTalk

we’re talking about life aboard the
International Space Station featuring my
interview with a guy who was there for
nearly a year Scott Kelly I had to ask
Scott the question that we all want to
know the answer to how do bathrooms work
in space check it out the zero-g toilets
they worked okay for you very
complicated toilet and it will and it
works pretty well why should it be
complicated uh you know you got to you
know separate the air from the urine
before it’s sent to a tank that the
whole toilet system oh this system that
and and some of the urine and you know
usually when I talk about the toilet I’m
also talking about the water processor
recovery system that turns our urine
into drinking water so it’s it’s pretty
sophistical thing yeah just emotionally
that just sounds nasty yeah yeah like I
drank my pee for a whole year right
right
does he actually drank everyone’s pee
exact all mixed together
what happens to all that is not the h2o
yeah from the urine what happens to that
it’s put into a container and then we
eventually when that tank fills we put
them into smaller tanks send them down
to the Russian segment they put them in
the progress their resupply ship and
eventually that burns up in the
atmosphere then that tank will
eventually come back with urine in it we
put an entire system we turn it into
water eventually Brian wait so what
burns up in the atmosphere the whole
progress a whole spaceship okay so that
spaceship is designed it’s your garbage
disposal assisting exactly didn’t know
that and that is a critical resource the
ability to get garbage off of a
spaceship is something that is not not
simple
so shoo what are you doing it made me
thirsty
[Laughter]
[Music]