Last week, Axiom Space’s second team of dedicated space tourists aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft arrived at the International Space Station for the eight-day vacation of their lifetimes. But staying in microgravity conditions hasn’t been very pleasant for some space tourists. NASA hinted that the crew had difficulties with “sanitary practices” or simply using the toilet on the ISS.

Current generation space composts absorb liquid and solid waste into special vacuum tubes. But astronauts who have used them say their smell is unbearable. Most likely, it was this feature that turned into a spicy problem for the AX-2 team.

Unpleasant incidents related to toilets in space

Toilet on Earth depends on gravity, but toileting in space has long been a challenge for scientists and astronauts alike. For example, during the Apollo 10 mission in 1969, the crew had to deal with a “flying troublemaker” far from Earth. Then, on the way to the moon, NASA heard Commander Tom Stafford promptly demand a napkin because “stool is flying in the air.”

The toilet problem also remains valid in private field companies. For example, SpaceX acknowledged in September 2021 that the Inspiration4 mission is facing a waste disposal challenge. Just a month later, SpaceX shared details of the incident: the space toilet, based on two separate vacuum tubes, leaked under the floor of the spacecraft and sprayed urine. Fortunately, the crew did not even notice this pollution.

The AX-1’s previous mission was also not without problems with the toilet. During the reception of the first space tourists in orbit, the toilets on the ISS in American modules broke down. That’s why CNN learned that the astronauts had asked the Russians to allow them to use their facilities.

Overall, space remains a hostile environment at both large and small scales. No training on Earth can fully prepare space travelers, no matter how prepared they are for the realities of life in orbit.