The toilet aboard the Artemis II capsule has reportedly broken down again, leaving the four astronauts without a functional bathroom during their return to Earth.
According to a source for the Daily Mail, the Orion capsule's toilet has stopped working - a problem that has plagued spaceflight since the launch of Artemis II on April 1.
NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen are now expected to use a similar alternative to diapers for the remainder of the trip. The space agency later confirmed that the toilet was still not working when the Artemis II flight reached day six of the ten-day mission.
NASA had previously said that, in the event that the capsule's toilet stopped working, astronauts would have to use a backup device called a Collapsible Contingency Urinal (CCU).
The CCU is a urine collection support system developed specifically for the Artemis missions to the Moon. Essentially, it is a plastic bag with special internal surfaces, called hydrophilic vanes, that act as tiny channels. They use capillary action, the same natural force that allows a paper towel to absorb a liquid, drawing urine away from the astronaut and directing it to the bottom of the bag.
At the bottom of the bag is a small discharge port. The crew can connect it to the capsule's systems and safely release the urine into space.
According to NASA's communications team, the assessment of the toilet problem from Sunday has not changed today. Astronauts can still use the toilet for urgent needs, but the issues with contaminated water are still being reviewed.
During the Artemis II launch, the crew experienced some minor toilet problems, including controller and ventilator failures that affected urine collection. Later, a frozen urine vent line made it difficult to flush fluids into space. In both cases, NASA confirmed that astronauts could use the toilet for urgent needs.
If Artemis' toilet has completely stopped working and can no longer handle solid waste collection, the four astronauts will have to use old-style fecal bags, which are plastic bags sealed with tape and paper towels, similar to those used on the Apollo missions to the Moon. The bags will be sealed, stored inside the capsule, and returned to Earth with the crew.
The broken toilet is an improved version of an experimental model launched to the International Space Station in 2020. Compared to the toilet on the ISS, the Orion bathroom was modified to be more practical for female astronauts. NASA also found enough space inside the capsule to place the toilet in a small separate room.
Before launch, Hansen described the capsule's bathroom as "the only place we can feel a little alone during the mission." However, the crew reported a "flashing orange warning light" shortly after liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
After several hours of troubleshooting on the first day of the mission, it was decided that the new toilet simply needed to be “warmed up” and was authorized for use.
The toilet broke down for the second time when the urine vent line became blocked by ice, forcing NASA's center to position the capsule in the sun to melt the blockage. It's not known if the problem can be fixed a third time.
Artemis II will have a "day off" on the seventh day of the mission, Tuesday. The capsule is expected to return to Earth on Friday, April 10, landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California. /GazetaExpress/
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