US EditionToilet Troubles on Artemis II: How NASA’s A-Team Fixed an Erratic Waste System Just Hours Before Launch
NASA said the Orion crew could still use the toilet for solid waste while engineers restored urine collection after a controller problem.
- On Wednesday, April 1, NASA's Artemis II mission launched four astronauts from Kennedy Space Center on a 10-day moon trip, though the crew soon reported a blinking fault light in the Orion spacecraft's toilet system.
- NASA Director of Flight Operations Norm Knight identified a controller issue that caused the Universal Waste Management System fan to jam, preventing astronauts from urinating while fecal collection remained operational.
- Mission Control teams in Houston assessed data and provided troubleshooting instructions, with Capcom Amy Dill radioing mission specialist Christina Koch: "Happy to report that toilet is go for use. We do recommend letting the system get to operating speed before donating fluid, and then letting it run a little bit after donation."
- After four hours of rest, the crew woke Thursday morning to prepare for a perigee raise burn that will lift Orion's orbital path and prepare it for translunar operations.
- Artemis II represents the first crewed lunar mission in more than 53 years, with the spacecraft set to pass about 6,500 kilometers from the lunar surface, as NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman confirmed the astronauts are "doing great" and Orion is "performing well in an impressive elliptical orbit.
22 Articles
22 Articles
NASA Artemis II Crew Scrambles To Fix Unexpected Toilet Failure in Space
A surprise toilet malfunction tested Artemis II—but the crew fixed it fast and is back on track for the Moon. NASA’s Artemis II astronauts recently dealt with an unexpected but important issue aboard the Orion spacecraft. After completing a proximity operations demonstration, which involves carefully maneuvering the spacecraft near another object to test navigation and [...]
Although the take-off of Artemis II was a success, NASA's lunar mission has faced several setbacks in orbit. The Orion ship's crew reported faults in the toilet controller and water tank crossing valves, essential for hydration and cooling. In addition, there was a partial loss of communications for 51 minutes and previous problems in the batteries of the self-destruct system. NASA assured that these failures will be corrected in future missions…
The Artemis II astronauts spent their first day doing Earth orbit tests to make sure they could actually leave for the moon tonight, and they... fixed their toilet.
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