From 2009, astronauts on the ISS will have a tasty new drink on the menu. What is it?

Question

I have read Newscientist magazine today and it says this will be ''a cocktail of recycled human urine, sweet and rat pee''. How do they mean? isn't this urine mean the real urine we all know?

Answer 1

I don't get the "rat pee" part. I live in Singapore, and we've been recycling urine for several years now (I'm sure it's been done elsewhere too). The recycled water is pumped back into our reservoirs, and forms about 1% of our drinking water. That figure will rise over the years. Of course, there was a lot of scepticism and many off-color jokes about the whole thing. There are looming water shortages in many parts of the world, and this may be part of a larger solution. In the ISS, it would probably be a question of economics -- the cost of resupply is pretty exorbitant, and the cost and quality of recycled water will come down. As grayure said, our water is recycled by nature anyway.
I wonder how long it will be before ISS occupants will be able to order an "Earl Grey, hot" from their food synthesizers.

Answer 2

As disgusting as it may sound, you can extract and purify pure water from urine. So you're recycling the urine and sweat into water that is no longer a form of bodily waste and doesn't contain any of the chemicals or microbes that would be found in urine.

Answer 3

understand what WC Fields used to say about water? certain, the ISS astronauts drink recycled urine. I undergo in innovations this tale about this guy that were given trapped in a collapsed progression after an earthquake which includes his mom-in-regulation. After an afternoon their thirst became so undesirable that the guy began to drink his personal urine, even if the female refused. She died, he lived. "The Circle of life..."

Answer 4

Urine is sterile, but not flavorful. Remove the impurities, and you have sparkling clean, pure delicious mountain spring water imported from Earth at great cost. Bon appetit.

Answer 5

Yes, it does sound pretty disgusting, but it makes sense.
It wouldn't be feasible to keep shuttling water up there, to be used once, and then thrown away.
This would be an absolute necessity for long- duration spaceflight anyway, so the astronauts will have to start getting used to the idea now.
Clear Skies!
Bobby

Answer 6

This happens all the time on Earth anyway. The liquid part of urine goes back into the water cycle anyway. In fact, my wife drinks her own urine, which she talks about in this interview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v/EMZaCOaLf9Y&l=315&t=OEgsToPDskKbbcDSBNhx4kRirfQLiBHn&sk=aHI7eZJHQWFuTx7bWDWB2QU&sourceid=ys

(although i wouldn't generally recommend it).