Scientists at Cornell University are trying to improve one of the less cool, but still practical, parts of Dune a reality. In a new study this week, the team debuted a design for a spacesuit that recycles urine into drinkable water, similar to the stillsuits worn by the Fremen of Arrakis. The suit should allow astronauts to take longer spacewalks, among other benefits, and the scientists hope it can debut in time for upcoming missions to the moon and Mars.
During space missions, we already routinely recycle our body’s liquid waste back into clean drinking water. Last year, for example, NASA announced that astronauts aboard the International Space Station now recycle 98% of their urine and sweat, up from the 93% previously achieved. As gross as it sounds, this recycling stretches the limited resources a crew has at its disposal.
Currently, however, astronauts can’t do this while actively wearing their spacesuits. If they have to during a spacewalk, they simply use modified diapers, which while helping to extend missions, can also be a bit of a hassle. For example, the diaper can sometimes leak, making it uncomfortable for astronauts to wear, and this exposure to debris can even increase the risk of complications such as a urinary tract infection. Astronauts can reduce their urine output by not drinking much water before a spacewalk, but that can be dangerous in itself and limits how long a spacewalk can be safely conducted.
From science fiction to reality
Directly inspired by the work of Dune Author Frank Herbert, scientists from Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell University have designed a spacesuit to address these challenges. They have already created a prototype of the suit and detailed its inner workings in a paper published Thursday in the journal Frontiers in space technology.
“The design incorporates a vacuum-based external catheter leading to a combined forward-reverse osmosis unit, which provides a continuous supply of potable water with multiple safety mechanisms to ensure the astronauts’ well-being,” lead author Sofia Etlin, a research associate at Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell University, said in a rack from Frontiers, the magazine’s publisher.
The portable system can filter 500 milliliters of urine in about five minutes, with different collection methods for women and men. It’s not as efficient as the larger systems aboard the ISS at the moment, with a recycling rate of 87 percent. But that should be enough to help astronauts extend their spacewalks in greater comfort.
Need for better spacesuits
NASA expects to send astronauts back to the moon in the coming years, with a manned lunar landing, the Artemis 2 mission, expected later this decade. NASA also hopes to send humans to Mars as soon as possible. 2030sand there are already several related missions underway on Earth. The Cornell team believes their suit could be invaluable for these goals, and claims it could be ready by the time the Artemis missions get off the ground. However, engineers will need to study the suit more closely before deeming it space-worthy.
“Our system can be tested in simulated microgravity conditions, since microgravity is the primary space factor we must consider. These tests will ensure the functionality and safety of the system before it is deployed in actual space missions,” lead author Christopher Mason, a professor of physiology and biophysics at Weill Cornell, said in a statement.
A spacesuit that recycles urine into drinkable water is certainly great, but would scientists care if they could come up with a way for my brain to quickly calculate complicated mathematical equations (like a group dinner bill), à la the Mentats?