Still Running
In Frank Herbert’s epic 1965 sci-fi novel “Dune,” those adventurous enough to brave the desert landscapes of the fictional planet Arrakis wear a full body suit called a “stillsuit” that can preserve all of the body’s moisture with the help of a filter that recycles both sweat and urine.
A tube inserted into the wearer’s nostrils, as dramatized in the 2021 blockbuster adaptation and its more recent sequel, can replenish the wearer’s water levels without depending on an external source of the precious liquid.
While the concept is fictional, engineers at the YouTube channel The Hacksmith recently tried to create their own stillsuit using surprisingly simple technology — and as it turns out, it’s not nearly as far-fetched as it sounds.
Sweat Hot American Summer
While the DIY stillsuit doesn’t look nearly as sleek as the one portrayed in the 2021 film adaptation — it’s essentially a Tyvek suit with an off-the-rack Dune costume worn on top of it — the engineers did manage to collect the body’s moisture and allow team member Darryl Sherk to drink it through a tube.
The team used a thermoelectric cooler, which is a small gridded device that can cool a computer or other appliances by running an electrical charge through two different types of metal.
The cold side of the device stayed inside the suit, attracting moisture in the trapped air, not unlike a dehumidifier.
Meanwhile a drinking bladder, combined with an in-line water filter purchased from the local sports supplies store, collected the resulting water and allowed Sherk to suck it up like a straw.
The strange contraption apparently led to plenty of questions around The Hacksmith’s HQ.
“Everybody keeps thinking I’m drinking my own pee,” Sherk complained in the video.
Of course, it’s far from a perfect solution and likely won’t allow you to survive on the scorching surface of Arrakis for very long. After all, Dune is set roughly 20,000 years in the future, plenty of time for technological breakthroughs and inventions we can’t even dream of.
That’s not to mention the author’s creative license and a big helping of movie magic.
But Hacksmith suit, which was put together in a single day, is still an impressive proof of concept — disgusting body fluids notwithstanding.
“How does it taste?” channel owner James Hobson asked Sherk.
“Warm!” the cosplaying Fremen replied. “Just like water!”
More on Dune: Neil deGrasse Tyson Complains That “Dune 2” Isn’t a Shining Beacon of Scientific Accuracy
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