Spirits soar as the International Space Station's only toilet is repaired.
Cosmonaut-plumber Oleg Kononenko tackled the critical job of fixing the sole toilet aboard the International Space Station, with apparently successful results after a two-and-a-half hour maintenance call. Kononenko, the station's lead flight engineer, replaced a pump needed to filter urine so the waste can be properly processed. The Russian-made toilet has been working only intermittently for about 10 days, requiring time-consuming manual flushes four to five times a day.