Houston, We Have a Problem — With the Toilet
The international space station's lone toilet is broken. The solid waste collection system is still functioning, but for liquids, the astronauts have to make do with a backup bag. NASA will send replacement parts on the next shuttle.
Copyright © 2008 National Public Radio®. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.
ROBERT SMITH, host:
Good morning. I'm Robert Smith.
In space no one can hear you scream - for a plumber. The international space station's lone toilet is broken. We don't know who flushed what, just that the Russian-made toilet stopped working. The solid waste collection system is still functioning, but for liquids, the astronauts have to make do with a backup bag. NASA will send replacement parts on the next shuttle, but not even NASA can afford a plumber's orbital house call.
This is MORNING EDITION.
Copyright © 2008 National Public Radio®. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to National Public Radio. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio.

Comments
Discussions for this story are now closed. Please see the Community FAQ for more information.