Astronauts on spacewalks famously have to relieve themselves inside their spacesuits. Not only is this uncomfortable for the wearer and unhygienic, it is also wasteful, as—unlike wastewater on board the International Space Station (ISS)—the water in urine from spacewalks is not recycled.

  • Fermion
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    1 month ago

    Mass still costs energy to move around. Spacewalks already sound pretty strenuous. Adding any additional exertion seems like it would need a really good benefit to be worth the tradeoff.

    • lud@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      1 month ago

      Depends on the weight. It might be lighter and easier to work with than a collection unit and a water supply tank.