Living and Working on the International Space Station
The International Space Station will provide astronauts from
around the world with an ideal location from which they will be
able to live and work in space. When it is completed in 2005 the
Space Station will be the biggest laboratory ever built in space.
It will be 108,5 metres by 88,4 metres, which is about the size of
a Canadian football field! Wow! That’s big!
Do you remember which countries are working together to build
the International Space Station? Here’s a hint: the following
flags belong to the sixteen countries participating in building this
incredible habitat in space. Can you name them?
Eating in Space:
What do Astronauts Eat?
Just like you and your parents plan family meals for
the week, astronauts also have to decide ahead of time
what they will be eating. A few weeks before the
launch, Marc Garneau met with a dietician to choose
his meals for his time in space. The dietician checks to
make sure that each astronaut gets all the vitamins
and minerals they will need while they are in space.
Did you know that all meal packages on board the International
Space Station have a coloured sticker and a Velcro strip on them?
The reason for the coloured sticker is that not everyone likes to
eat the same thing, and not every one has the same dietary
needs. Thus, each astronaut is assigned a different colour to
identify his or her meal. What do you think Marc Garneau’s colour
is going to be during this mission?
Green!
So, when he is hungry,
he will select a meal with the green stickers on it. A Velcro strip
keeps the food package on the tray.
Most of the food planned for the International Space
Station will be frozen (like frozen TV dinners)
refrigerated (like fruits, vegetables and dairy
products) or thermostabilized (food that is heat-
processed, canned and then stored at room
temperature). Many of the beverages will be
dehydrated; this means that they will have to add cold
or hot water to drink the beverage, just like we do
with Kool-Aid or hot cocoa.
A Typical Meal in Space
Aboard the Shuttle and the Space Station,
astronauts prepare their meals in the galley; this
is like the kitchen in your home. The galley has a
water dispenser, a table, an oven, a freezer and
two refrigerators.
The astronaut’s meal tray is similar to cafeteria trays
with one very important difference; it is magnetised
so that metal knives, forks and spoons can stick to the
tray and not float away. In addition, on the top and
bottom of the tray there are also strips of Velcro.
Velcro keeps the tray stuck to the table and the meal
packages stuck to the tray.
Astronauts use a knife, fork and spoon to eat and a
straw to drink with but they also need another special
utensil. Can you guess what that might be? In order to
open the food packages, astronauts need a pair of
scissors.
What About Clean Up?
After a meal on Earth, whether it is putting the dishes in the
dishwasher or washing them by hand, someone has to clean up. In
space, because the water supply is limited, eating utensils and
food trays are cleaned with pre-moistened wipes. When the meal
is finished, all the trash is collected into trash bags and placed
into containers to be brought back to Earth for disposal.
Hygiene Matters
Bathing
Staying clean is as important in space as it is on Earth.
Aboard the space shuttle, astronauts take sponge
baths because of the limited water supply. On the
International Space Station there is enough space for
a full body shower. However, each astronaut will be
limited to approximately 4 litres of water per shower.
When astronauts want to take a shower on the
International Space Station, they step into a
cylindrical shower stall and close the door. In space
water does not act the same way it does on Earth. Can
you guess what happens to the water? Well, the water
will not drip down like on Earth (because there is no
gravity to help it flow downward) so it will accumulate
on the astronaut’s body forming a sort of water skin.
The astronaut uses a soap dispenser, which looks like a
tube of toothpaste only it has soap inside instead, to
get cleaned. In order to get rid of the water and soap,
the astronaut uses a suction device (a vacuum) that
will remove all the water and soap.
Dental Care
Did you know that astronauts have to bring their own
supply of fresh water during space flights? This is why
water is such a limited resource on the International
Space Station. To save water, NASA developed a
special toothpaste that the astronauts can eat in
order not to waste water when they are brushing their
teeth.
Do You Really Have to Go?
The waste collection system, or what we call a toilet on
Earth, is basically the same in space as on Earth. First of all,
because of microgravity astronauts must use feet and thigh
restraints so that they don’t float away! When an astronaut
flushes the toilet, instead of having water dispose of the
waste there is a vacuum. That’s right! Air is used to dispose
of the waste. Solid wastes are compressed and stored
onboard to be removed later. Liquid wastes are recycled
into water or simply evacuated into space.
When astronauts need to urinate, they use a large
tube that is connected to the bottom-front of the
toilet. Anatomically correct “urine funnel adapters”
are attached to the tube so both men and women can
use the same toilet.
The Space Bedroom
Private Quarters
Each astronaut has a “personal sleep station”, which is
like their bedroom. One of the sleep station’s walls is
lined with a large drawer. Pulling out the drawer is like
pulling out a wall bed. The inside of the drawer looks
like the inside of a suitcase. This is where they keep
their personal belongings. The sleep station has a
reading lamp, clothes drawers and/or nets to make
sure nothing floats away, a shelf or desktop and a
sleeping bag.
Bed Time
Going to sleep in space is like going camping. When it’s
time for bed, astronauts take their “sleep restraint”
(sleeping bag) and snap it to one of the walls, floor, or
ceiling - it doesn’t matter since there is no up or down
in space.
Once they are in the sleeping bag they zip themselves in, letting
their arms float outside the sleeping bag. They also use a head
strap that attaches to the wall with Velcro so that their head
doesn’t move.
A Space to Themselves
Astronauts go to space to perform science, observe the Earth,
repair satellites and so much more. However, during their free
time, astronauts have the opportunity to play cards, games, read
or write. They also bring their favourite music to listen to on CD
players. What would you like to do if you had some free time in
space?
An astronaut’s favourite “off-duty” past time is just
looking out the window at the Earth below. Many
astronauts have mentioned how they would spend many
hours looking down on our planet, noticing how
beautiful and fragile it looks from space.
Why is Exercise so Important?
Bird Legged, Puffy Faced Astronaut
On Earth, gravity pulls everything down. Thus, the lower torso
and legs carry the weight of the body. In space, because of
microgravity, astronauts float and the legs are basically not used.
In space, the lower back and leg muscles are affected
the same way as muscles that have been in a cast for a
while. Muscles become flabby and lose tone and mass.
This is called muscular atrophy, and makes the limbs
affected look skinnier. The bones also become weaker
because of the loss of minerals like calcium, potassium
and sodium.
Space also affects the cardiovascular
system of the human body. On Earth,
because of gravity, blood naturally
pools in the legs, therefore, the
heart has to pump against gravity to
supply enough blood to the brain. In
space, the heart acts the same as it
would on Earth. However, because
there is no gravity, the blood rushes
to the torso and head. In this case,
what the astronaut experiences is
the “puffy face syndrome”. The veins
in the neck and face stand out more,
and the eyes become red and swollen.
Daily Exercise
Astronauts try to lessen the puffy face and the bird leg
syndromes by exercising as often as possible. Astronauts must
exercise at least two hours every day to keep their muscles
healthy.
What kind of exercise can astronauts do in space? Astronauts
use a stationary bicycle and a treadmill to exercise both the
lower and the upper body muscles. They use a series of straps
and restraints to remain secure against the exercise equipment.
Working on the International Space Station
Because of microgravity on the space shuttle and on the
International Space Station, some jobs are a challenge. For
example, tools and fluids float away if not handled
carefully. Eating is also more of a challenge and so is going
to the lavatory. Other jobs, however, become easier.
Moving about is very easy and so is reaching the top shelf.
Moving massive objects is also accomplished with greater
ease because they feel like they do not have any weight.
But, once a massive object is moving stopping it is a
challenge; the object could collide with the inside walls with
the same force used to get it moving.
During spaceflight, astronauts are often the subjects of
experiments to determine how they adapt to weightlessness.
They also conduct experiments with cells, plants, and other
biological material in order to understand the basic mechanisms
underlying the changes observed in humans.
This research has already had many applications on
Earth. Research in calcium loss, human energy use, and
muscular atrophy in space has had an impact on the
treatment of elderly patients and those with cerebral
palsy.
Before long, when Canadians spend long periods aboard the Space
Station, space life science researchers will be able to extend
their research over several months, and it is expected that this
will have a considerable impact on the quality of life on Earth.