Houston, we have a toilet problem: Artemis II crew runs into plumbing snafu on deep-space mission

In: Science

The Artemis II astronauts ran into some tricky toilet trouble on the first day of their historic lunar flyby.

The crew saw a blinking fault light – like a “check engine” light in a car – shortly before performing a crucial step to send themselves into a higher orbit of the Earth overnight Thursday, above where satellites and the International Space Station reside.

The problem turned out to be a controller issue, Norm Knight, NASA’s director of flight operations, told reporters at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center.

The toilet fan, which removes odor and airborne particles, was jammed, NASA spokesperson Gary Jordan said during the agency’s livestream of the mission, Space.com reported.

That’s a pretty important function inside the 330-foot Orion spacecraft, which will aid NASA’s efforts to return humans to the moon for the first time in more than 50 years.

NASA's Artemis II Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft lift off from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center Wednesday. The four astronauts had to work to fix toilet problems on the spacecraft just hours later
NASA’s Artemis II Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft lift off from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center Wednesday. The four astronauts had to work to fix toilet problems on the spacecraft just hours later (Getty Images)

“Now the ground teams are coming up with instructions on how to get into the fan and clear that area to revive the toilet for the mission,” he said.

NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen will call the capsule home for 10 days before they are expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean.

Even with the fan issue, the astronauts could still use the commode to poop – but not urinate.

“In the meantime they’re getting their contingency – their backup waste management capabilities specifically for urine,” Jordan said.

After mission control teams successfully assessed the data, they were able to fix the problem.

“The Artemis II crew, working closely with mission control in Houston, were able to restore the Orion spacecraft’s toilet to normal operations following the proximity operations demonstration,” NASA said in a statement.

The toilet is the first designed for a mission to deep space. It has a door, somewhat like these stalls which were designed for the International Space Station
The toilet is the first designed for a mission to deep space. It has a door, somewhat like these stalls which were designed for the International Space Station (NASA)

The $23 million toilet, also known as the Universal Waste Management System, is the first designed for a deep space mission.

It uses airflow to pull urine and feces away from the body in the zero gravity space environment. There are also foot restraints and handholds for astronauts to keep themselves from floating away.

“A new feature of the UWMS is the automatic start of air flow when the toilet lid is lifted, which also helps with odor control,” NASA said in 2020.

Toilet paper, wipes and gloves the astronauts wear are disposed of in water-tight bags and solid waste in individual water-tight bags is put into a removable fecal storage canister.

If the Artemis toilet cannot be fixed in the future for some reason, the astronauts would need to collect their urine in bags, according toThe New York Times.

For now, the Artemis team will continue to test their spacecraft’s capabilities and systems Thursday, before heading to the moon on day five or six of their flight.