Large (Wet) Towel
Large (Wet) Towel
Large white vacuum packed wet towel, an example of those used on the Russian space station Mir between 1986-2001. Serial number 09B9802148.Water behaves very differently in space than it does on Earth. Without gravity to make it flow naturally, using water to shower or wash your hands in space presents a challenge.
Mir did include a shower but cosmonauts found it difficult to use and time consuming to set up. Eventually it was removed and the space was repurposed. Instead, the cosmonauts preferred to simply wipe themselves clean with cloths like this one.
Between 1986 and 2001 Mir operated in low Earth orbit and hosted over 100 individuals. It served as a microgravity research laboratory where cosmonauts could live and work on long duration missions. At the time, it was the largest artificial satellite to orbit the Earth, until it was succeeded by the International Space Station.
More information
Object number
1999-7
Location
Into Space Gallery
Has this object been into space?
No
Dimension - Dimension, Value, Measurement unit
Depth: 2.0cm
Height: 12.0cm
Width: 10.0cm
Material
Cotton
Plastic
Water
Object Production Date
1980s
Object Production Organisation
NPP Zvezda
Object Production Place
Russia
On Display Status
On display
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