如果奔赴火星途中你裹在宇航服中，可是你又迫切需要“解決問題”，怎么辦呢？現實中，宇航員們就因為穿著笨拙的宇航服而無法接觸自己的身體，加上完全失重狀態下排泄物很難清理，因此，在太空上廁所成了一大難問題。近日，美國航空航天局（NASA）拿出3萬美元，用以獎勵能切實解決“太空排泄”難題的人。

When you've got to go, but you're out there in space, zipped up in a spacesuit, with no toilet in sight and a crew of other astronauts around, what do you do?
如果你在太空裹著宇航服時，迫切需要方便一下，但是周圍看不到廁所又有一群宇航員在，你要怎么辦呢？

NASA has launched a contest for inventors to solve this uncomfortable issue, and promises to award $30,000 to the best "space poop" solutions.
為了解決“太空排便”這個讓人難受的問題，美國宇航局發起了一場發明征集賽，最佳方案可以獲得3萬美金獎勵。

Inventors have until December 20 to submit designs for a personalized waste-wicking system that will handle everything, hands-free, for a period of up to six days.
參與者需在12月20日前遞交個性化的排泄物處理系統，該方案要能夠解決所有問題、不用手且持續周期最多為6天。

"The old standby solution consisted of diapers," said the description of contest details at www.herox.com/SpacePoop.
www.herox.com/SpacePoop網站在比賽細則中描述道，“老辦法是用尿布。”

"However, the diaper is only a very temporary solution, and doesn’t provide a healthy/protective option longer than one day."
“然而，這只是一個臨時解決方案，尿布使用超過一天就沒辦法保證健康和防護性?！?/p>

Sometimes, astronauts have to wait even longer. The two men and one woman who packed themselves into a Russian Soyuz space capsule last week had to wait two full days between launching from Kazakhstan and arriving at the International Space Station.
有時候，宇航員甚至要等得更久。上周，兩名男性和一名女性進入了俄羅斯聯盟號太空艙，從太空艙在哈薩克斯坦發射起到抵達國際空間站，期間他們必須等待兩天。

U.S. astronaut Kate Rubins, left, Russian cosmonaut Anatoly Ivanishin, centre, and Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi

The Soyuz is equipped with a portable toilet, which looks like an air-powered pee jug.
“聯盟號”配備了便攜式廁所，它看起來像是一個空氣動力小便壺。

On future missions to deep space destinations like an asteroid or Mars, NASA suspects it could take up to 144 hours, or six days, to get to a proper toilet.
未來太空任務的目的地是小行星或是火星之類更遠的地方，美國宇航局猜測，宇航員們可能要堅持6天才能找到一個合適的廁所。

In emergency situations, astronauts may need to zip themselves into a fully pressurized, bulky orange spacesuit, complete with helmet and gloves.
在緊急情況下，宇航員可能需要將自己包裹在完全加壓的、配有頭盔和手套的笨重橙色宇航服中。

"While sealed, it is impossible for an astronaut to access their own body, even to scratch their nose," NASA said.
“因為宇航服是密封的，所以宇航員不可能觸碰到自己的身體，他們連自己的鼻子都摸不到?！?/p>

That's where the inventors come in. Astronauts need some way to clear away urine, fecal matter and menstrual blood efficiently, or they risk infection.
這正是需要發明家的地方。宇航員需要有效清除尿液、糞便以及經血的方法，否則就有感染的風險。

The problem is that in weightlessness, fluids can blob up and stick to surfaces, while solids float in the air.
問題是，在失重狀態下液體變成水珠浮于表面，而固體會漂浮在空中。

"You don't want any of these solids and fluids stuck to your body for six days," NASA said, recalling how easy babies can get diaper rash.
美國宇航局表示，“你不會想要任何這類固體和液體在身上停留6天時間?！边@讓人聯想到嬰兒很容易得尿布疹。

Currently, while at the International Space Station, astronauts use a toilet contraption that includes a vacuum and a tube to help evacuate fecal matter.
目前，宇航員在國際空間站使用的廁所裝置包含幫助輸導糞便的真空泵和管道。

To urinate, they use a funnel attached to a hose that can be adapted for a sitting or standing position, and uses air to move urine away.
他們小便時使用一個漏斗，這個漏斗連接的軟管，使得坐姿或站姿都可使用，并通過空氣將尿液清除。

NASA vowed to award up to three $30,000 prizes for the most promising in-suit waste management systems.
美國宇航局承諾，對最出色的宇航服內部排污管理系統獎勵3萬美元，最多獎勵三人。

The goal is to test them within a year and fully implement them within three years.
他們的目標是在一年內測試系統，并在三年內全面應用。

NASA says the first human missions to Mars could take place by the 2030s.
美國宇航局表示，可能于本世紀30年代實現首次人類火星登陸任務。

英文來源：法新社
翻譯：董靜
編審：yaning