NASA announces ‘Lunar Loo Challenge’ to come up with best space toilet for its future lander

The contest began on 25 June and the winner will get $35,000 in total prizes along with public recognition and a winner’s certificate. National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA has announced the “Lunar Loo Challenge” to come up with the best space toilet for the agency’s future human lander. According to a NASA statement, “While astronauts are in the cabin and out of their spacesuits, they will need a toilet that has all the same capabilities as ones here on Earth.” NASA has subsequently called on the global community for their “novel design concepts for compact toilets that can operate in both microgravity and lunar gravity.” As per a report in The Verge, NASA’s Artemis programme, which aims to send the first woman and next man to Moon by 2024, needs to have a restroom that is versatile. Mike Interbartolo, project manager for the Lunar Loo Challenge said, “We wanted to see what’s out there — what the unknown unknowns are and put the power of the crowd to find those citizen scientists who’ve got different perspectives.” The Guardian reporte d that Space toilet technology has evolved a lot since the time of Apollo when bags had to be taped to astronaut’s buttocks. While the international space station features a large, industrial-looking Russian-made toilet that uses suction, NASA is seeking something that would function equally well on the lunar surface.