Hair Care in Outer Space

[k_hepburn]

Seeing those pictures from the latest NASA mission to Mars (an unmanned one, for now ...) and having my space station screen saver come on before, got me to start wondering about the daily realities of space flight.

And, of course, somehow hair care came to the forefront of my mind. After all, while you may find some way to wash yourself in outer space, presumably washing ones hair (if it's any longer than a pixie) should be a problem, if not an impossibility. After all, in zero gravity it would be pretty tricky to even wet your hair, and without "running" water - as opposed to droplets spreading every which direction - you would not be able to remove any kind of shampoo or conditioner you applied. Dry shampoo wouldn't be such a good idea either. Unless you used some kind of vacuum cleaner hose to suck it off again, you'd be bound to end up covering your space ship / station in dust.

So, is it a sebum only routine for astronauts? Is seriously long hair feasible in space? How do you untangle it in zero space? Questions about questions, non of them rating as matters of great importance (I also read an item on the news this week about the toilet on the ISS having given up the ghost - now there's a pressing issue :D ), but still I'm curious.

(Of course, if anyone offered me a position on a flight into outer space, I guess I'd be prepared to sacrifice my hair if necessary :cool: ).

katharine

[Saranne772]

I just have this image of hair floating in a frizzy mass in every direction. Past classic length hair too. LOL

[Islandgrrl]

From the NASA Website:

MALONE: And Sara from Detroit, Michigan, has a question that I’m interested in: How do astronauts with long hair like Sunita Williams wash their hair in space?

MELVIN: Sara, that’s a very good question and, actually, since I don’t have very long hair, I don’t need to know about this. But I sent Suni an e-mail yesterday and she sent me back a response which is right here. I cut and pasted it into this page. And she said she wets it with water, she puts in some herbal Russian shampoo that doesn’t really foam up a lot, and then she rubs it around. She towels it off, she adds more water, rubs it around again and then she towels it off again. She does this a couple times to get all the, all of the shampoo out, and she says it really, really works well. And she also said the U.S. shampoo makes her hair feel like straw. So I’m glad I don’t have that problem.

You can see it here: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/STS117webcast_prt.htm

Sunita Williams actually cut her long hair while in space, and supposedly donated the ponytail to LoL.

[Islandgrrl]

And then there's this fact sheet, also from NASA:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/spacenews/factsheets/pdfs/live_work_fact_sheet.pdf

I don't believe I ever want to go into space.....

[k_hepburn]

Thnalk you very much for posting that information and link, Islandgrrl. Going from personal experience (rinse, rinse some more, switch shower setting to water jet, rinse again) though, I'm not quite sure I can believe the towelling off method to remove shampoo properly. Still, that Russian shampoo sure sounds like it might actually be something some of us LCHers wouldn't mind giving a try. I wonder how NASA would react, if someone wrote to them asking about the brand of shampoo the astronaut is using and where you can order it ;) .

Greetings

katharine

[Islandgrrl]

I wonder how NASA would react, if someone wrote to them asking about the brand of shampoo the astronaut is using and where you can order it ;) .

Hmmmm....I think that deserves a little investigation!!! :cheese:

[mira-chan]

Thnalk you very much for posting that information and link, Islandgrrl. Going from personal experience (rinse, rinse some more, switch shower setting to water jet, rinse again) though, I'm not quite sure I can believe the towelling off method to remove shampoo properly. Still, that Russian shampoo sure sounds like it might actually be something some of us LCHers wouldn't mind giving a try. I wonder how NASA would react, if someone wrote to them asking about the brand of shampoo the astronaut is using and where you can order it ;) .

Greetings

katharine

Russia herbal shampoos are milder. Most don't have SLS and are more soap based. They are somewhat similar to Burt's Bees shampoos from the US ones. Some are even milder. Most of Russia has very soft water. If you find out what brand it is (there are MANY) I could probably find it.

[freznow]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0dw-IzKxWU

Washing Hair in Zero Gravity. This was posted once at the old LHC, if I remember correctly.

[mira-chan]

Amusingly I had this from my Ethnobotany class trip.

Russian Nettle Shampoo.
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/kitsunethief/IMG_1090.jpg

[mommy101405]

I always figured they just put it in a bun and washed it when they got back. :D

[Alun]

I think i could cope with zero G hair washing. What bothers me more is the thought of the only toilet breaking when you are in outer space! How on earth can they cope with that problem?

[k_hepburn]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0dw-IzKxWU

Washing Hair in Zero Gravity. This was posted once at the old LHC, if I remember correctly.


Wow, that was really interesting to watch. I'm amazed. She must have been using no more than a total of two litres of water, one to wet the hair, another one to "rinse". She managed to work up a good lather, too. But what I can't quite understand, even having watched it, is how she managed to get so much of the shampoo out just by towelling the hair (when she did the rinse there obviously aren't many suds left). And her hair being curly should have made things even trickier.

Fascinating! Thanks for the link, freznow!

katharine

[Ursula]

I think i could cope with zero G hair washing. What bothers me more is the thought of the only toilet breaking when you are in outer space! How on earth can they cope with that problem?

Well, the old spaceships (Mercury, Gemini, Apollo) didn't have bathrooms at all. Back then, they didn't have women astronauts, but there was a condom-like device, with tube to a storage bag, for men to urinate, and plastic bags to defecate. I assume they still carry such devices, as backup, if there is only one bathroom, and a suitable alternative device for women to urinate.