What do they do when the only toilet in the I.S.S. is broken?
I was stunned that they only had one toilet for a crew of people trapped in space! Hell, if all of my toilets ever broke (and there was nowhere else to go), I could at least go outside!
I heard on NPR that the toilet was partially broken- it would flush three times and then they would need to fix it. here’s a summary of the NPR report- the article is about half way down the page: http://www.npr.org/newsinbrief/index.html
The backup plan is to use the plastic bags developed during the Apollo mission. They’re described in more detail here.
FYI, as for the Space Shuttle, its toilet is described here. I’ve seen the Shuttle toilet simulator at Johnson Space Center in Houston (although based on that article, I believe I saw the older design) so that the astronauts can practice the maneuver. The design I saw required the user to make a seal between the butt and the seat, so the simulator had a camera down below to help one practice.