USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION
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International Space Station Expedition 42 Commander Barry “Butch” Wilmore shows off a ratchet wrench made with a 3-D printer aboard the vessel.
LIFE IN THE LAB Tight quarters, zero gravity and insomnia are all part of a typical day aboard the International Space Station
By Mary Helen Berg
A
STRONAUTS ABOARD THE INTERNATIONAL Space Station (ISS) live a life experienced by only 218 people in the world. Though part of their daily routine is familiar to all of us, even mundane tasks become extraordinary when your home is a high-tech microgravity lab hurtling through space at 5 miles per second, 250 miles above your home planet.
ORBITING OUTHOUSE
For instance, imagine trying to do your “business” in zero gravity and floating
away from the throne. Or worse. “You do occasionally get what we call a ‘brown trout,’ where the ‘fish’ get away and you have to corral them with a wet wipe and put them back where they need to go,” revealed Barry “Butch” Wilmore, who served as ISS commander from November 2014 to March 2015. The ISS toilet is much like a standard commode with a lid and seat, but since there’s no gravity, crewmembers use various restraints and handles to keep themselves in the correct position. Astronauts use a “waste collection
CO N T I N U E D
NASA