Woman astronaut NASA who spent nearly six months on the International Space Station (ISS) reveals her “space” experience and what it’s like to live 250 miles above Earth in zero gravity, talking about everything from toilet habits to exercise routines and food.

According to a Daily Mail report, Kayla Barronof Richland, Washington, was a member of the Expedition 66 crew from Nov. 10, 2021, to May 6, 2022, and as part of her mission, conducted various science experiments to help identify new materials that could be used to design future spacecraft boats.

During her stint in space, Kayla, 35, shared images and videos on social media and in a recent Reddit thread gave more insight into what went on behind the scenes of the ISS.

Astronaut and toilet

Asked by an eight-year-old how she went to the toilet, Kayla revealed: “We have space toilets with fans that create suction to remove waste from our bodies. We pee in a hose with a funnel on the end, and defecate in a bag inside a container. It takes some getting used to, but it works really well!’

Sleep

On the subject of sleep, Kayla explains that as the ISS orbits the planet every 90 minutes, crews experience 16 sunrises and sunsets each day and “spend about half the time in the sun and half the time in the shade.”

However, because humans follow a cycle of about 24 hours—also known as a circadian rhythm—this is how astronauts structure their days in space.

Kayla and her colleagues worked GMT and usually slept from around 10pm to 6am.

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A post shared by Kayla Barron (@astro_kayla)

Meals

Meal times also followed a similar structure to Earth, and the dried meals she had were much better than she thought, according to her.

Some of her favorite culinary creations included vegetable quiche, shrimp pasta, and “perhaps the most sought-after… Japan Space Agency canned chicken teriyaki! I highly recommend it,” she says.

Exercising on the Space Station

On her Instagram page, where she goes by the moniker @astro_kayla, Kayla posted a video to show how she’s been working out in space.

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A post shared by Kayla Barron (@astro_kayla)

In the clip, she is seen using various pieces of equipment, including a running machine and some bicycle pedals which she manipulates while standing and pulls herself down to keep from swinging.

It explains in the accompanying caption that astronauts on the ISS exercise daily to “stay fit and prevent muscle atrophy and bone loss.”

For her, exercise also provided a “huge psychological benefit” as she was able to take some time for herself.

I would feel very exhausted without it [το γυμναστήριο]”, she said.

Space… view

Aside from the “amazing equipment,” one of the other features of the built-in gym, Kayla said, was the view thanks to a large observatory unit.

He captioned it: “People usually come here and take pictures… as far as I know it has the best view of any gym in the world or off the planet.”

Bathing in space

In another video, Kayla shows viewers how she washes her hair in space.

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A post shared by Kayla Barron (@astro_kayla)

As water behaves differently in zero gravity by floating instead of splashing, the astronaut demonstrates how she has to use a bag with a straw attached to shoot the water directly onto her scalp.

This way, the water is absorbed into her hair instead of escaping.

She then has to run her fingers through her hair to ensure all her locks are wet.

Once that’s done, she uses a “shampoo bar” before rinsing it three to four times to check that the lather has come out.

In the video, her hair can be seen standing up when she finishes bathing.

How did he get to… space

As for her career path, the Washington native graduated from the US Naval Academy with a degree in systems engineering.

Then, as a Gates Cambridge Scholar, Kayla gained an MSc in nuclear engineering from the University of Cambridge before becoming a Submarine Warfare Officer.

She was among the first class of women assigned to the submarine community and worked on a ballistic missile submarine.

Following her assignment to the Navy, Kayla was selected by NASA to join the 2017 astronaut candidate class and reported for duty in August of that year, following a training process.

Giving her advice to other aspiring astronauts, Kayla concludes: “Never close the door on yourself! When you dream big, it’s easy to talk yourself out of risking failure, but failures are often the best opportunities to learn and grow, and if you don’t take risks, you’ll never reach your goals.”

“Share your dreams with people you trust, take risks and don’t assume that just because things are hard it means you won’t make it.

“When I joined the Navy, I never dreamed that one day I would be an astronaut. I knew I wanted to serve and dedicate my life to something bigger than myself. It was only when I served on a submarine that I thought I might have the potential to become an astronaut,” the astronaut said.