NASA still perfecting recycled water ...

Excerpt from CTV.ca:

NASA to recycle urine into water during missions

21 October 2007

NASA researchers are developing a machine that will satisfy the need to reuse water on long-distance space flights by recycling urine.

"We turn urine into drinking water -- or Gatorade, depending on your tastes," joked NASA's Dr. Sherwin Gormly.

Current goals of returning to the moon and travelling beyond are hampered by the need to carry necessities, such as water, for longer flights.

Gormly said shipping just a kilogram of water in a shuttle costs about $5,000.

"We simply cannot ship a year's worth of water with somebody at a reasonable cost," he said.

The machine would reuse 95 per cent all water on board a spacecraft, meaning much less water would have to be taken along.

The distilling machine will take urine, other wastewater and even exhaled breath and purify them using chemical membrane osmosis, to produce more drinking water for the astronauts.

The machine will produce enough water to sustain six people each day.

And like other tools created for use in space, Gormly says the research could have broad implications.

With climate change and the prospect of low water supplies on earth, water conservation is becoming increasingly important.

Researchers said the machine could also reduce water use at home.

"The bottom line is right now, we're in the infancy of 100 per cent recycled water in the space business. And we are way ahead of where people are in the civilian world," said Gormly.

Marc Garneau, a former Canadian astronaut, said the beverage could take some getting used to.

"I've heard people say, and people who have had a glass of recycled urine, that there's something psychological about it. And I can understand that," he said.

The first machine could be on board the international space station by next year.

See - NASA still perfecting recycled water.

Remember the Toowoomba water debate when they gave the impression that all human waste was recycled on board spacecraft and happily consumed by astronauts?

Guess they were wrong.

Seems they weren't doing it everywhere, including in space ...