ISS Trash

[imspartacus]

Why can't trash (human waste, etc) be send into the atmosphere to be burned-up on re-entry? (Is human waste such a good insulator that it won't? ;-)

 

[vogon13]

Soviets did it with their space stations throughout the seventies and eighties.<br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>

 

[vogon13]

Poo flambe' ?<br /><br /><img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /><br /><br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>

 

[CalliArcale]

Pretty much. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /><br /><br />The main reason they pack the trash (including "waste" from the toilet) into the Progress instead of just spacing it is because you don't want any more random bits of junk floating around than absolutely neccesary. Each piece is a potential collision hazard. The Progress, on the other hand, has propulsion. It can steer itself clear of collisions and deorbit itself in a controlled fashion.<br /><br />But space travellers weren't always so thoughtful, and <i>did</i> space their waste. I seem to recall a post from somebody talking about a dinged Orbiter window that turned out to be due to a collision with frozen cosmonaut "business". <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[imspartacus]

I as not aware that the progress burned-up. I assumed that it was recovered.

 

[vogon13]

It occurs to me that a certain 'deve' element might rather enjoy our sordid exchanges.<br /><br /><img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /><br /><br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>

 

[drwayne]

Yep, not giving it a heat shield saves weight, allowing additional cargo mass.<br /><br />Cargo goes up, garbage goes in the incinerator. Simple, and logical. The Russians are superbly logical problem solvers.<br /><br />Wayne <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>"1) Give no quarter; 2) Take no prisoners; 3) Sink everything."  Admiral Jackie Fisher</p> </div>

 

[CalliArcale]

Aw, that makes the story much less amusing, shuttle_guy. <img src="/images/icons/tongue.gif" /> Oh well! THanks again for correcting me! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>