Oh, We Have Liftoff All Right

[n2doc]

NASA and astronauts face the dirty reality of slipping the surly bonds of Earth
By Steve Mirsky November 16, 2010 7

In space, as was first noted in the ad campaign for the movie Alien, no one can hear you scream. What prompts that screaming in the Alien franchise and other space opera sci-fi is typically terror, dismemberment or larval-monster intestinal occupation. But more mundane issues make real-life astronauts want to scream. Because in space, everybody can smell your gas.

Space, when done with people living together in close quarters, stinks. Best-selling author Mary Roach catalogues the rank unpleasantness of space travel in her new book Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void (W. W. Norton, 2010). Her introduction’s first words encapsulate, if you will, the situation: “To the rocket scientist, you are a problem. You are the most irritating piece of machinery he or she will ever have to deal with.”

We humans are incredibly demanding because of our hunger and thirst—and the messy, odoriferous products of our satiety. Humans are the reason the space shuttle needs toilets. And humans in zero gravity are the reason the toilets have rearview mirrors. (You can find the details in Roach’s book or spend a moment to think about the various ramifications of weightless evacuation.)

The Mercury, Gemini and Apollo spacecraft didn’t even have toilets—rudimentary devices were used for docking and capture, ruling out the chances of anybody boldly going. Showers are also too tricky to deal with out there. So it’s no surprise that the interior of your average spaceship quickly winds up smelling very, very bad. Think of a car ride with three immature guys for whom “pull my finger” is considered a droll example of classic wit. Now imagine spending a week in the car with the windows rolled up.

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http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=oh-we-have-liftoff&sc=emailfriend