In space, no one can hear you tinkle. But just to be sure, Space Perspective has designed a luxuriously private bathroom experience on board its balloon-propelled capsules.
The space tourism company has already sold more than 1,600 tickets for its luxurious trips to the edge of space, which it says will commence in 2024. This week, Space Perspective unveiled a rendering of its “space spa” design, equipped with a toilet, sink, and what’s guaranteed to be a breathtaking view that can be enjoyed in sweet, sweet solitude.
“We’re thinking of the lavatory as the one place that you can actually go where you can essentially be alone,” Dan Window, head of experience design at Space Perspective, told Gizmodo in an interview. “It’s the opportune time for the ultimate kind of selfie experience.”
Unlike other space tourism experiences, the ride on board Space Perspective’s Spaceship Neptune is six hours long, so this bathroom design is a first-of-its-kind necessity.
Space lounge
Spaceship Neptune is a capsule that will be carried off to the stratosphere by what the company calls a “SpaceBalloon.” The giant balloon is propelled by hydrogen and rises up at a slow speed of 19 kilometres per hour.
The company prides itself in this being a calm and gentle ride, with the SpaceBalloon intended to propel itself into space without the violent rumble of a blastoff. With that, the capsule is pressurized and intended for people to walk around.
One ticket on board Spaceship Neptune is worth a whopping $US125,000.
Nature calls, or not
Since the capsule is pressurized, there’s no need for a vacuum toilet similar to the one astronauts utilize on board the International Space Station (ISS). Instead, the lead designer behind the space bathroom wants the passengers to forget there’s a toilet at all. “What we’re trying to do with it is, to a certain extent, almost hide the fact that it’s actually a physical toilet,” Window said.
Whether or not they need to go, passengers can still enjoy the private view from the bathroom by sitting on a square cushion designed to cover the toilet seat.
The main attraction
Ascending to an altitude of 30 kilometres, passengers will enjoy a panoramic 360-degree view, witnessing Earth’s curvature and the blackness of space, with visibility extending up to 724 km in any direction. For context, passenger jets typically ascend to heights of 12.7 kilometres. Needless to say, Spaceship Neptune won’t actually reach space, the boundary of which begins 100 km above the surface.
The rather expensive outlook onto our planet can be enjoyed from the two windows of the capsule’s bathroom. Hopefully passengers won’t take too long to ponder their existence on the toilet seat as there’s only one bathroom and eight people on board the capsule (plus an open bar).
Window seat
The bathroom’s windows also close for extra privacy, not that there will be anyone on the outside peering in from the edge of space.
“The way we position the seats allows you to [move] away from the windows themselves so that you’re not forced directly up against the windows for the entire journey,” Window said. “You can actually get away from that kind of periphery if you are scared or nervous of the heights.”
All the fixings
The bathroom is also equipped with a sink and mirror, resembling an upscale version of regular aeroplane bathrooms.
Serenity in space
Space Perspective describes the vibe of its space spa as “clean, serene, and a little bit meditative,” with a calming, clean aesthetic for the interior to accentuate the boldness of the outside view.
Very little space at the edge of space
Aside from the visual aspect of the laboratory, the lead designer also had to consider the scale and size of the capsule. “That was our main responsibility to start with,” Window said. “So we did all the layout drawings and actually worked out how big the diameter of the sphere would be, and everything else was from that point forward.” The team behind the design went through over a 100 different layouts to get to the final mockup.
Luxury tourism
The company first revealed the interior of its capsule in April 2022, showing off its customizable mood lighting, bucket seats, and a bar.
Socialize at your own expense
“The way that we’ve broken up the design is to create two lounges on either side,” Window said. “So, not forcing people to be social but allowing for that.”
Off to the skies
On the outside, the capsule is fitted with reflective coated windows and a splash cone for water landings. The new splash cone is designed to ensure gentle and safe landings in the water, while the reflective coating on the windows will help keep the interior comfortable and cool.