Those tranded Boeing Starliner astronauts are apparently being forced to deal with some pretty undignified living standards.

It sounds less than ideal — but as the report notes, Williams and Wilmore’s difficulties don’t end with their sleeping arrangements.

As with every ISS mission, the Starliner astronauts initially had specific jobs to do on board the station that would have eaten up their eight-day journey. As Time reports, their main priority was checking in on the Boeing capsule and making sure its communications, life support, and other essential functions were in good shape.

With that checklist done and their journey having been extended until possibly February due to Starliner’s technical issues, Wilmore and Williams have instead been assisting their fellow crew members with their tasks and experiments, including repairing a urine processing pump.

Beyond that lovely job, Wilmore and Williams were also forced to stretch their clothing rations because there’s no laundry on board the ISS. Generally speaking, astronauts pack enough clothes for the length of their journey, and with their trip home having been pushed back repeatedly, the Starliner crew had to make do until a Northrop Grumman resupply mission finally came to deliver them new clothes earlier this month.

  • catloaf@lemm.eeEnglish
    34·
    4 months ago

    As opposed to what? Sharing a bed with another astronaut? I thought that solo sleeping bags were the standard.

    • mkwt@lemmy.world
      37·
      4 months ago

      Most of the regular crew gets a sleeping bag in a cupboard with some small locker space for personal effects.

      Wilmore has just the bag, off in the Japanese module. And I guess he has to store personal effects in the Starliner. Though presumably he only packed for 8 days.

      In climate controlled zero gravity, there’s no point to having more bedding than a light sleeping bag just to keep you from floating off somewhere. My guess is the big selling point on the cupboards is some noise damping, and maybe some protection from lighting. Spacecraft have noisy machines running all the time to keep you alive

      • catloaf@lemm.eeEnglish
        11·
        4 months ago

        I know they have earplugs and masks available, so it doesn’t really sound like this is a big deal. I think the article is just trying to farm views.

    • Zipitydew@sh.itjust.works
      10·
      4 months ago

      They’ve each done longer missions on ISS than their current stay. Suni once held the record among female astronauts.

  • Mobiuthuselah@lemm.ee
    65·
    4 months ago

    Am I missing something? I thought their lives were in danger or something. We’re here talking about sleeping arrangements and clothing? From what they described, I put up with FAR worse while camping in various weather conditions here on earth. Am I confused about what they’re going through?

    • evidences@lemmy.world
      9·
      4 months ago

      Essentially the chance of something wrong happening on there return is high than like 1/270 or something, Scott Manley said 1/270 in a video so that’s where I’m getting that number, so they’re keeping them up there until they can either bring that chance down or get them another way home. If shit were to hit the fan in their orbit and they had to come home right now they could hop in Starliner and return but the risk for non emergencies is higher than NASA wants to accept right now.