That's not TANG they're drinking

The crew of Space Shuttle Discovery has just finished their 8th day in orbit. The highlight of the day was a completion of the mission's 3rd spacewalk, which had two astronauts outside of the shuttle for 6.5 hours.

One of the snags that this mission to the International Space Station has encountered has to do with the station's Urine Processor Assembly:

Two hundred and fifty miles above the Earth puts you a long way from the nearest kitchen tap. And at $15,000 a pint, the cost of shipping fresh water aboard the space shuttle is, well, astronomical.

So astronauts on the International Space Station have to recapture every possible drop. That includes water evaporated from showers, shaving, tooth brushing and hand washing, plus perspiration and water vapor that collects within the astronauts' space suits. They even transfer water from the fuel cells that provide electric power to the space shuttle.

And, since last November, they are able to tap a previously unused source of water: the astronauts' own urine.

The Water Recovery System...can transform ordinary pee into water so pure it rivals the cleanest on Earth.
[...]
Under the new system, urine undergoes an initial distillation process and then joins the rest of the recovered fluids in the water processor. The processor filters out solids such as hair and lint and then sends the wastewater through a series of multifiltration beds, in which contaminants are removed through adsorption and ion exchange.

"What's left over in the water are a few non adsorbing organics and solvents, like nail polish remover, and they go into a reactor that breaks them all down to carbon dioxide, water and a few ions," said [David] Hand, a professor of civil and environmental engineering.

After a final check for microbes, the water is again clean and ready to drink.

According to a post from yesterday on NASA's shuttle mission blog:

International Space Station Commander Mike Fincke just replaced a filter assembly in the Urine Processor Assembly (UPA). Mission Control hopes this will increase the rate of urine flowing into the UPA, after a slower-than-expected rate was noted earlier today. This issue is not related to the newly-installed Distillation Assembly.

Fincke is filling the UPA with urine and, if all goes well, will begin to process a sample. It takes four to five hours to process a complete sample.

Apparently the processor was experiencing a slower-than-expected output a few days ago. Hopefully Mr. Fincke will get the thing filled (in whatever manner he and NASA deem is appropriate) and output levels will be better. And we can all marvel at the wonders of space age technology. Now let's just hope that the good folks at Dasani don't get ahold of this technology.

(And, for those of you keeping score, this is now the second time this blog has made reference to peeing astronauts...I think I might need counseling.)