She further added that "the toughest modules to clean are certainly Node 3, where we have the toilet and the exercise equipment, and Node 1, where we eat." The astronauts take turns cleaning the messiest modules, she wrote.Īstronauts also have to regularly vacuum clean ventilation grids, which can "get pretty dirty, because all the little debris that floats in the cabin eventually gets taken by the airflow to a return grid," Cristoforetti wrote. Speaking about the weekly cleaning routine on the space station during her 2014 Futura mission, European astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti said in a blog post that astronauts use disinfectant wipes to sanitise handrails, handheld microphones, computers and anything else they touch to minimise their bacterial trail. A NASA study published in 2020 also found that the station's microbiome changes as crews rotate, which makes sense as each astronaut brings their own unique set of microbes with them, which then colonize the station’s interior. Previous studies have shown that many types of microorganisms thrive on the space station, with some doing even better in the microgravity environment than on Earth. The experiment, called Matiss (Microbial Aerosol Tethering on Innovative Surfaces in the international Space Station), returned to Earth earlier this year after more than twelve months in space. The European Space Agency (ESA), previously ran a similar set of experiments to test the ability of five types of surface materials to repel microbes.
After the samples return to Earth, Boeing will analyse how effectively the coating stopped the spread of the microorganisms. As astronauts touch the objects, they transmit microbes that naturally occur on human skin.
#How to clean space how to
Only one set of objects is treated with the coating. How to Increase C Drive Space 1 Uninstall Junk Applications 2 Delete Junk Files by Storage Sense 3 Delete Temp Files by Disk Cleanup 4 Empty Recycle Bin 5. The experiment requires astronauts to regularly touch two sets of objects including an aeroplane seat buckle, a piece of seatbelt fabric and a tray table.
Related: There Are Bacteria and Fungi All Over the Space Station, and Now We Know What They AreĮarlier this year, a Boeing-led experiment began at the space station testing a new type of antimicrobial surface coating that could help to prevent the spread of microbes, including the SARS-CoV-2 virus, in airplanes. Such materials could do the same job on Earth, protecting door knobs, elevator buttons and other objects that humans frequently touch. Space junk exponentially creating more debris through collisions is called Kessler Syndrome. Approximately 95 of the objects in this image are space junk, though their size has been greatly exaggerated to showcase their position. Space agencies are studying advanced materials that could make future space travel safer. A computer-generated image of the objects around Earth.