Fun Informative Twitter Thread On Bathroom Breaks In Space

Monday, December 21, 2020

Fun Informative Twitter Thread On Bathroom Breaks In Space

It's a lot easier said than done when it comes to taking a leak in outer space. I guess you'd expect nothing less. Everything seems to have an innate tendency to grow far more complicated as you drift further away from this particular rock that's flying through space. Mary Robinette Kowal provides an equally entertaining and informational Twitter thread on the backstory surrounding astronauts' experiences with trying to functionally use the restroom while on missions in outer space.

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Let's talk about peeing in space. Several people, in response to my NY Times essay, have said that women couldn't go into space because we lacked the technology for them to pee in space. 11:00 AM · Jul 19, 2019 ♡ 73.9K 31.2K people are Tweeting ab..

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette When the Mercury program was proposed, doctors were worried that people would not be able to urinate or even swallow without the aid of gravity. And yet, they still made plans to send a man into space. 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 ♡ 7.1K 393 people are Tweeting about ..

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette When Alan Shepherd became the first American man to go into space, it was scheduled to be a fifteen-minute mission. Up. Hello space! Back down. They made no plans for peeing. 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 7K 292 people are Tweeting about th...

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ O @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette Launchpad delays meant that Shepherd hit a point where he needed to go. Badly. He asked Mission Control for permission to go in his suit. After consultation with flight surgeons & suit technicians, they gave him permission to do so. So he wet himself & still went into space. 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 ♡ 8.2K 423 people are Tweeting about ..

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette Later, they solved this problem by developing a sheath, that looked much like a condom. It worked great in testing, but when the actual astronauts used it, the sheath kept blowing off and leaving them with pee in their suits. Was this about extended time in the spacesuit? 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 ♡ 6.3K 330 people are Tweeting about ..

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette The sheaths came in smallI, medium, and large. It turns out, the men were all saying that they needed a Large sheath. They did not. Subsequently, the astronauts called the sheaths were called "Extra-large," "Immense," and "Unbelievable." 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 17.8K O 1.5K people are Tweeting abo..

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette They had to tape a bag to their ass to poop. That worked well for Gemini and Mercury. And by well, I mean there was still urine in the capsule and it stank of feces. Apollo needed a different solution. 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 6.4K 280 people are Tweeting about .

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Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette Alas, they stillI had to poop into a bag, but for peeing, they could slip on a condom attached to a valve, turn the valve and have their urine sucked into the vacuum of space. If you timed it right. 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 ♡ 5.9K O 238 people are Tweeting about .

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$Text - Mary Robinette Kowal@ @MaryRobinette Replying to @MaryRobinette Open the valve a fraction too late, and urine escaped to float around the cabin. Open it too early and the vacuum of space reached through the valve to grab your manhood. Apparently, the venting of pee into space is very pretty. It catches the sunlight and sparkles. 11:01 AM · Jul 19, 2019 O 10.2K 682 people are Tweeting abou.$