Scientists have unveiled a sci-fi-inspired spacesuit that can recycle urine into clean drinking water while astronauts are in space.
The prototype is modeled after the "stillsuits" from the sci-fi film "Dune" and collects and purifies urine and then returns it to the astronaut through a drinking tube.
It's intended to allow astronauts to perform lengthy spacewalks on upcoming missions.
Its creators hope it could be implemented before the end of the decade in NASA's Artemis program, which is focused on learning how to live and work for extended periods of time on another planned.
The design includes a "vacuum-based external catheter" leading to a an "osmosis unit" that will provide a "continuous supply of potable water," Cornell University researcher and co-designer Sofia Etlin told the Guardian,
While urine and sweat are recycled on the International Space Station (ISS), Etlin said a similar system is necessary for when astronauts are outside of the station.
"Astronauts currently have only one liter of water available in their in-suit drink bags," she explained. "This is insufficient for the planned longer-lasting lunar spacewalks, which can last 10 hours and even up to 24 hours in an emergency."
The current suits are also known to leak, be uncomfortable and be unhygienic. That causes some astronauts to limit food and drink before spacewalks.
"If you're giving NASA billions of dollars, you'd think they wouldn't keep the diaper," Etlin quipped.
The stillsuit system includes a silicone cup, shaped differently to fit around the genitalia for men and women, and is contained within a multi-layered flexible fabric undergarment.
The cup connects to a moisture-activated vacuum pump that starts automatically when the astronaut urinates.
The collected urine is then filtered and recycled into water with 87% efficiency using an osmosis system and a pump to separate water from salt. Collecting and purifying 500 ml of urine takes only five minutes.
The team intends to recruit 100 volunteers in New York in the fall to test the system for comfort and functionality, the Guardian reported.
NASA is preparing the Artemis III mission for 2026 to land a crew on the lunar south pole and aims to launch crewed missions to Mars by the 2030s.
