Astronauts have nails that need clipping just like the rest of us

Jan 21, 2013 22:31 GMT  ·  By

Movies make life in space sound ultra-glamorous and, while it can be, when you're looking down on Earth from above or watching a sunrise from orbit, most of the things people actually in space do are fairly mundane. Yet, these mundane things can sometimes be more interesting than you'd imagine.

Take nail clipping for example, not something anyone on Earth choose to think about too much and probably one of the least interesting things anyone does.

Clipping your nails in space isn't as straightforward as it may seem, the big problem is that there's no gravity so the clippings won't just neatly fall down, they'll float all over the place, getting into people's eyes or their lungs, or interfering with the electronics and machinery.

Still, astronauts spending six months aboard the ISS have to clip their nails every once in a while and the solution to this problem isn't as high-tech as you'd expect, but it certainly is ingenious.

The trick is to simply clip your nails near an air vent, ensuring that they're sucked into the vent and don't get carried away.