3 Surprising Things ISS Astronauts Are Absolutely Banned From Doing

The International Space Station (ISS) is one of the most massive and complex machines humanity has ever constructed. Five space agencies came together to put it into orbit and maintain it. These were NASA, Roscosmos, the European Space Agency (ESA), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The ISS' first module was launched in 1998, and it took several years before it was fully operational.

Since it entered into stable orbit, the ISS has been manned without fail, with over 270 astronauts from different space organizations arriving and departing over the years. Everything that happens aboard or outside of the ISS is heavily monitored by people planetside, and that's not hyperbole. NASA and the other organizations monitor each astronaut's information, and while they give as much privacy as possible, there's very little to have when you're careening through space at 17,500 mph with the eyes of the world upon you.

Astronauts serving aboard the ISS are heavily regulated in what they can eat, drink, and do. Their tasks are assigned and monitored, and they're required to engage in specific exercise routines to ensure they maintain muscle mass in the microgravity environment. Those aboard the ISS don't merely have everything regulated; they're also prohibited from eating, drinking, and doing certain activities, some of which may surprise you.

Astronauts have been chowing down on specially made meals since the beginning of space exploration, and fortunately, the food has improved. Astronauts aboard the ISS can even grow their own edible crops, though that's more of an experiment than a sustainable food source. For most of their meals, the astronauts have a choice of options that need rehydrating and heating up to consume. While they have more options than the Apollo astronauts, there are restrictions.

Because the astronauts aboard the ISS operate in a microgravity environment, there are some foods they are absolutely prohibited from eating. These include bread and chips, which may surprise you. Bread and chips produce a great deal of crumbs on the best of days, and crumbs can get inside machinery or electronics and cause all kinds of problems, so they're prohibited.

That's not all an ISS astronaut can't consume, as they aren't allowed to use salt, pepper, or other seasonings, for the same reason. Even astronaut ice cream isn't allowed because of crumbs. Carbonated beverages are also prohibited because carbonation affects digestion differently in space, and you don't want to find out how. Finally, it is against the rules to consume fish, and if you've ever microwaved a fish meal at work and dealt with your co-worker's complaints, you know why — that smell will persist inside the ISS for days on end.

Everyone that visits the ISS is an adult who works hard, so why not let them enjoy a beer at the end of a long day? There are a couple of reasons why alcohol isn't permitted for anyone serving aboard the ISS. Beer is already banned because it's carbonated, but you won't find a drop of wine or spirits to be found aboard the ISS, either. 

Daniel G. Huot, a spokesperson for NASA's Johnson Space Center, explained why to the BBC: "Alcohol is not permitted onboard the International Space Station for consumption. Use of alcohol and other volatile compounds are controlled on ISS due to impacts that their compounds can have on the station's water recovery system." If you didn't know, all water, to include urine, is recycled onboard, wasting very little in the process.

Shipping water up to the ISS isn't feasible, so the astronauts simply recycle it all. If their urine is contaminated with alcohol or other similar substances, the recycling machinery can break down or fail to function properly. Astronauts cannot even use mouthwash, perfume, or aftershave because they all contain alcohol. On top of that, you can't drink while driving or flying a plane, so why would astronauts in charge of operating a $150,000,000,000 space station be allowed to?

Believe it or not, one of the biggest no-no's aboard the ISS is sex. This is a long-established rule, and one every astronaut must adhere to, even if it makes living on the ISS somewhat challenging. However, the reasons actually make a lot of sense. For one thing, sex in microgravity is incredibly difficult — it's difficult to interact with someone intimately if every motion results in floating apart from one another.

There's also the concern over a complete lack of privacy for the people involved, and the ones who have to listen to those who are. Additionally, bodily fluids pose a risk to machinery, and without getting into too much detail, that's not something the various space agencies are willing to risk. There's also the likelihood of injury, which is a problem, and pregnancy can be concerning, as being an astronaut isn't the safest profession in the world. That said, actually getting pregnant in microgravity may not be possible outside of IVF.

NASA has spoken about sex in space and insists it hasn't been done... yet. That said, it is theoretically possible if certain measures are taken to ensure there's no personal injury, nothing is left floating about, and some measure of privacy can be achieved. Still, until NASA changes its blanket "no sex" policy, there's little chance any astronauts will get up to some hanky panky and join the 220-mile high club anytime soon.