Although disgusting to most of us, astronauts aboard the ISS sometimes wear the same underwear for up to a whole week. The reason for this inconsiderate habit is that we have washing machines on Earth, but cleaning or washing clothes in space is not easy at all.
Although it is true that clothing does not get dirty in space in the same way as on Earth, logically it continues to be used and, therefore, degrading its hygiene. Since there is no washing machine on the International Space Station, when clothes get dirty, they are shipped in packages that burn in the atmosphere, something that is anything but environmentally friendly.
For this reason, the design of a washing machine capable of disinfecting clothes in space is already underway. It is quite a challenge, since the device must work in microgravity.
A total of six student teams led by NASA mentors have been designing their own concepts, which could lead to the design of the ultimate space washer.
“Students are very creative, they don’t see the limitations that we see,” explains Nancy Hall, challenge consultant and expert in fluid mechanics at NASA.
As an example, there is the WASHING Machine , short for Wash And Sanitizing Habitat In No Gravity, which is basically a chamber that incorporates a titanium dioxide coating, in addition to ultraviolet light and ozone gas; all this together serves to disinfect clothing in low Earth orbit. Or DRUM , short for Drying Roller Ultra-Convenient Machine , which consists of a roller that uses magnets and capillary action to squeeze out excess water.
We will soon see which is the winning design.
