Washington: In a significant milestone, NASA said it was able to recycle about 98 per cent urine and sweat from astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) into drinking water -- an advance that can help it in upcoming missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond.
The ISS used its Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) to achieve this remarkable goal.
The ECLSS is a combination of multiple water recovery systems, including advanced dehumidifiers, a Water Processor Assembly (WPA), a Urine Processor Assembly (UPA), and a Brine Processor Assembly (BPA).
The system collects wastewater and sends it to the Water Processor Assembly (WPA), which produces drinkable water. One specialized component uses advanced dehumidifiers to capture moisture released into the cabin air from crew breath and sweat, NASA said.
Another subsystem, the Urine Processor Assembly (UPA), recovers water from urine using vacuum distillation. Distillation produces water and a urine brine that still contains some reclaimable water. , the apex space agency said.
Space missions beyond low Earth orbit, such as those to the Moon or Mars, present unique challenges when it comes to effectively managing crew supplies. Therefore, they require a comprehensive approach to resource management, emphasizing recycling, regeneration, and sustainable practices.
The aim is to minimize reliance on resupply missions and enable crews to sustain themselves for extended durations in the challenging environments of deep space.
“This is a very important step forward in the evolution of life support systems,” says Christopher Brown, part of the team at Johnson Space Center that manages the space station’s life support system. “Let’s say you collect 100 pounds of water on the station. You lose two pounds of that and the other 98% just keeps going around and around. Keeping that running is a pretty awesome achievement.”
“This is a very important step forward in the evolution of life support systems,” says Christopher Brown, part of the team at Johnson Space Center that manages the space station’s life support system.
“Let’s say you collect 100 pounds of water on the station. You lose two pounds of that and the other 98% just keeps going around and around. Keeping that running is a pretty awesome achievement.”
The team acknowledges that the idea of drinking recycled urine might make some people squeamish. But they stress that the end result is far superior to what municipal water systems produce on the ground.
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