978-1-4222-3418-1

Brushing Teeth in Space! Living in space calls for some interesting new ways to do things. Astronauts living on the space station still need to brush their teeth. But there are no sinks—they have to use straws to get water. Toothpaste flows up to the brush. Then it’s back to basics, brushing as on Earth. To rinse, most astronauts just take a sip of water, swish, and swallow. They can’t spit it out. Water escaping into the cabin of the ship could damage sensitive equipment. From brushing teeth to eating food in a bag, from sleeping stuck to a wall to us- ing a special toilet, life for scientists in space is a series of challenges!

As for their scientific work, that is usually a bit easier. The experi- ments they performwere designed to work without gravity. In fact, part of many such experiments is finding out how zero gravity changes things.

Just because you’re in space, doesn’t mean you don’t have to exercise. Here an astronaut runs on a treadmill. Straps hold her down so that her feet can push against the treadmill.

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