|
October 14, 2022 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
BRING SCIENCE HOME | Diapers: What Keeps Babies and Astronauts from Springing a Leak? | The secret of the vanishing water: How does chemistry help seal away water in diapers and other absorptive products? Try this gooey science activity and find out! Credit: George Retseck | When we think about diapers we usually think about babies. But did you know that astronauts also have to wear diapers sometimes? Astronaut "diapers" are called maximum absorbency garments (MAGs), and astronauts wear them when they have to stay sealed in their spacesuits for long periods of time, such as during spacewalks or when their spacecraft leave orbit to reenter the atmosphere to return home. For babies and astronauts, the most important thing for a diaper is to prevent leaks. But did you ever wonder how a disposable diaper actually works? What's inside the diaper that allows it to absorb all that wet stuff without making a mess? In this activity we're going to explore the substance in diapers that allows them to stay leak-free—in a cradle and in outer space! | | | |
LATEST ISSUES |
|
Questions? Comments? | |
Download the Scientific American App |
|
|