Men, do we have a deal on hi-tech knickers for you!

Floating in space, and not worrying about odor or fire damage. (Newscom)

In space, no one can complain about your month-old underwear
By Matthew Shaer

July 30, 2009

At least one space mystery has now been solved.

What kind of underwear do astronauts take up into the great unknown? Hanes? American Apparel? Perhaps something in a more athletic fit, like Body Armor? Try again. According to astronaut Koichi Wakata, who is returning to earth from months at the International Space Station, he’s been sporting a brand new pair of J-Ware briefs. For the last few weeks.

Straight. Without changing.

But don’t worry. These aren’t any ol’ normal kind of underwear. These are high-tech briefs, designed by a team in Japan to be odor-free.

“I haven’t talked about this underwear to my crew members,” Wakata told The Associated Press, reportedly drawing a big laugh from his colleagues. “But I wore them for about a month, and my station crew members never complained for about a month, so I think the experiment went fine.”

Wakata, who is due back on planet Earth on Friday, said the antistatic, flame-retardant underwear made his life in space very comfortable. The J-Wear line is designed by textile experts at the Women’s University in Tokyo, and is said to be made of anti-bacterial, water-absorbent, odor-eliminating material.

“We’ll see the results after landing,” Wakata said.

And remember, there are no showers on the space station.

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