NASA astronaut on the International Space Station has admitted this week that a design defect in SpaceX' Crew Dragon module toilet will require her and her colleagues to change diapers on their return trip to Earth.
According to Space.com, McArthur confirmed that we cannot use Dragon's toilet for the return trip.
SpaceX's first space tourism launch in September was fraught with drama. It was widely reported that Inspiration4's civilian crew had problems with its waste management system.
In October, it was discovered that Crew Dragon's commode was leaking human waste. This happened not only in the Inspiration4 mission module, but throughout the fleet. One space reporter commented that Crew Dragon seems to be resilient to piss.
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SpaceX must upgrade all Crew Dragon spacecraft's lavatory facilities, including Endeavor currently stationed at the station. SpaceX does not have the means to service Endeavor until it returns to terra firma.
Therefore the diapers. Space travel can be difficult and uncomfortable, but McArthur seems to be ready to handle it all.
Spaceflight is not without its challenges, and this is one of them, McArthur said during her remarks. Space.com. We didn't worry too much about it. We have a solid plan for the future.
Surprisingly, Shane Kimbrough, a fellow NASA astronaut, also mentioned latrine-related concerns in the same media appearance. He lamented that, due to continued delays in yet another SpaceX launch, astronauts to the ISS are unlikely to be with him and McArthur. Frances Thomas Pesquet and Japan's Akihiko Hside also spoke out to express concern.
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According to Space.com, Kimbrough stated that a lot of the handover time is spent showing the little things that space life requires, such as how to eat and go to the toilet.
Kimbrough stated that Mark Vande Hei was certainly capable of doing that and getting that next crew up-to-speed. He was referring to another NASA astronaut who will be on the station after McArthur's and Kimbroughs depart.
READ MORE: SpaceX Crew-2 astronauts discuss space toilet problems and other topics. But when will they land? [Space.com]
NASA Needs a New Space Toilet to Support the Artemis Moon Missions
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