Former NASA spaceman Garrett Reisman has revealed he once feared he might drown on a spacewalk during his tenure on the International Space Station ( ISS ) sometime between 2008 and 2010 .
Can you overwhelm in space ? No one has yet – but that does n’t signify there have n’t been some close calls .
Reisman revealed on Twitter he had not enjoyed the opinion of going down in chronicle as the first person to submerge in space when his spacesuit helmet malfunctioned , raising the theory of his helmet filling with water .
" Astronaut Tip # 217 : check that your bite valve is firm seize to your water system handbag straw , " hewrote . " When I saw mine float by INSIDE my helmet I was less than thrilled at the persuasion of becoming the first astronaut to drown during a spacewalk … "
Spacewalks , or Extravehicular Activity ( EVA ) – when astronauts embark outside their spacecraft to perform deed of maintenance , installations , or exploration – can last hours . The record is 8 hours and 56 minutes , put by NASA astronauts Jim Voss and Susan Helms in 2001 .
In case astronaut get a petty athirst while outside performing these feats , NASA spacesuits have drinking traveling bag inside the helmets that astronauts can seize with teeth down on to relinquish water . However , spotting the free-swimming valve to your water bag floating past you is not idealistic , as this means there is a very real potential for a helmet to fill up with water .
Luckily for Reisman , " the Earth’s surface tenseness proved to be enough to keep the majority of the urine in the dish , " hewent on to explain .
Reisman has not spoken about his near - girl before , and it ’s unclear when this spacewalk took place , as he conducted three spacewalks during his time on the ISS – but he is not the only place traveller to have been in the running to break that special record . In July 2013 , Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano support a similar malfunction but on a muchscarier scale .
During an EVA that was due to last six hours , Parmitano noticed water building up inside his helmet . He informed NASA of the situation at the time , but neither the distance authority nor Parmitano had yet realized how serious the incident was .
He remained outside the ISS for 23 minutes , with the H2O continue to leak into his helmet , before it start to get in his eyes and close to his nose and rima oris and NASA order him to get back to safety machine inside . This was n’t so easygoing with his vision compromised by the body of water sticking to the helmet vizor , confuse everything . Instead , he had to turn and find his way back to the hatch by look .
" At that minute , as I turn ‘ upside - down ’ , two things happen : the Sun sets , and my power to see – already compromised by the water – completely vanishes , making my eyes useless ; but worse than that , the water covers my nose – a really horrific sensation that I make bad by my egotistic attempts to move the urine by agitate my head , " Parmitano wrote of the experience in hisEuropean Space Agency blog .
" By now , the upper part of the helmet is full of pee and I ca n’t even be certain that the next time I breathe I will fill my lung with melody and not liquified . "
Luckily , he did care to fumble his way back to the hachure and get inside – though the trial by ordeal was n’t over , as he had to stay inside the suit , water and all , until the repressurizing of the suit was completed . When it was and he could take off the helmet they find oneself between 1 and 1.5 liters ( 0.26 to 0.40 gal ) of water inwardly .
“ I would say of all the EVA issues we ’ve encountered to escort , this is likely the most serious one that we ’ve chance , ” a NASA spokespersonsaidin 2014 following aninvestigation into the incident . “ I do n’t know of any other failures that have had this potential hazard associated with them . ”
