Space Water Canister

Space Water Canister

Water canister designed for use aboard Soyuz spacecraft. Dating to the 1960s, this is one of the earliest methods for transporting water into space. Water usage is a critical part of space travel, as it is only possible to take limited water supplies with you (modern space stations have developed some capability for recycling water). It is therefore important that water is stored safely and in a way that conserves space.

This early Soviet water canister is made from aluminium, ensuring that it was strong enough to avoid leakage as well as being designed to stack nicely with other water canisters. The drinking tube has a mechanism which allows it to be screwed into the lid, with the plastic pipe inserted into the canister to provide a tight seal that only allowed water to be extracted by sucking on the drinking tube. This ensured that water went straight into the mouth and did not float about the spacecraft in the weightless environment.

The design has similarities with the World War II-era German 'Wehrmacht-Einheitskanister' - subsequently nicknamed jerrycans. Jerrycans have large X shapes on two of their flat surfaces. This design feature gives the can rigidity, as well as allowing it to cope with changing temperatures and pressures - both of which effect the liquid inside. This X feature of the design has been carried through into this Soviet water cannister.