[FREE REPORT] Even in Space, we Need to Pick up After Ourselves...by Rosa Domingos | 29-08-2019 15:41 |
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 It is to no surprise that even in space, we have clusters upon clusters of trash floating. This is why NASA, in partnership with NineSigma turned to idea crowdsourcing through a competition challenge to get solutions for trash collection and recycling in space. The challenge, Recycling in Space: Waste Handling in a Microgravity Environment, which ended on January 2019. Accepted proposals from the public so as to sought out technologies and systems that will, in a microgravity environment, store & transfer logistical mission waste to a thermal processing unit for decomposition (Dern, 2019). The technology will improve the environmental footprint of future human spacecraft. Paul Hintze, a chemist with NASA¡¯s Kennedy Space Center Exploration Research and Technology Programs and a judge for the competition, said, ¡°The challenge produced ideas that were innovative and that we had not yet considered. I look forward to further investigating these ideas and hope they will contribute to our human spaceflight missions (Dern, 2019).¡± The challenge was opened on October 18, 2018. And on April 1, 2019, NASA and NineSigma announced the winners. The top prize ensured that in addition to the cash prizes, winners and other contestants have the satisfaction of knowing they are contributing to more successful space missions. Trash in space is a concern inside crewed vehicles and space stations, but the lack of gravity — and in some cases, atmosphere — makes proper trash-handling different and harder than down here on planet Earth. Moreover, dealing with life¡¯s ongoing chores and concerns requires new solutions in the absence of things we take for granted, like gravity and air (Dern, 2019). For example, disposing of trash — or recycling or repurposing it. In space, proper trash collection — whether of dead satellites, discarded pieces, or other detritus — or simply collecting cosmic clutter, is not just good housekeeping. It¡¯s a safety concern. In space, even a grain of grit colliding with a satellite or vehicle can be a problem — if it¡¯s traveling fast enough. And, according to NASA, more than 500,000 pieces of "space junk" orbit Earth "at speeds up to 17,500 mph".  Credit: Earth 911 (Dern, 2019) So what are the common waste generated in space? Well, according to NineSigma, for a mission lasting 1 year, a team of four astronauts would generate approximately 2,500 kilograms of waste. Other astronaut logistical waste include: Fabrics (from discarded clothing), foam, food packaging, human waste, and paper (Dern, 2019). Hence, the need for this competition. The Winners ranged from three countries, Romania (Aurelian Zabciu - 1st prize), United States (Derek McFall - 2nd prize) and Egypt ( Ayman Ragab Ahmed Hamdallah - 3rd prize)...Take a bow guys, well done! These recycling technologies could prove useful not just on future space missions, but on planetary surfaces, including here on Earth. Want to know more, See the NASA Tournament Lab to participate in open NTL challenges. And visit NASA Solve! for information challenges, citizen science activities, and prize competitions that help develop NASA-mission-related problems. Who knows...the next winner might just be you! Reference list: Dern,. D. 2019. In Space, Nobody Picks Up Your Trash: NASA Recycling in Space Award Winners. [Online]. Available: https://earth911.com/eco-tech/space-trash-nasa-recycling-in-space-award-winners/. May 3. 2019. Accessed: 28 Aug 2019. |
