Astronaut wore same underwear for a month in orbit

IN WHAT might embarrass less adventurous souls, astronaut Koichi Wakata is returning to Earth with the underwear he kept on for a solid month during his space station stay and scientists will check them out.

They’re experimental high-tech undies, designed in Japan to be odour free.

The Japanese spaceman described his underwear test as shuttle Endeavour and its crew aimed for a touchdown. The astronauts released some mini satellites, their final job before yesterday’s re-entry, and said it was time to come home after more than two weeks aloft.