Artemis II astronaut Christina Koch embraces ‘space plumber’ role; internet draws parallels with The Big Bang Theory’s Howard Wolowitz

A minor technical hiccup aboard the Moon-bound Artemis II quickly turned into a viral moment after astronaut Christina Koch proudly called herself the “space plumber” after helping fix a malfunctioning onboard toilet. The remark, made during the crew’s early journey on NASA’s first crewed lunar mission in more than five decades, brought online comparisons to Howard Wolowitz from The Big Bang Theory, known for his own fictional space-toilet mishaps.

‘I’m the space plumber’: Christina Koch moment from lunar flight

The mission, NASA’s first crewed lunar journey since Apollo 17 in 1972, launched four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft, NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency. At 47, Koch also became the first woman to travel to the Moon.



During a crew interaction from Orion, Koch humorously referred to her role after helping address a malfunction in the spacecraft’s toilet system. She quipped: “I’m the space plumber, I’m proud to call myself the space plumber.”

$23 million space toilet for dumping the joke

If you missed the buzz, the comment followed an issue on day one of the flight, when the onboard toilet malfunctioned. Ground control guided the crew step-by-step to restore the system. According to Space.com, the roughly $23 million Universal Waste Management System (UWMS) is designed for waste disposal and recycling in microgravity. It took more than a decade to develop and is used on both the Orion spacecraft and the International Space Station.

Unlike the Apollo program era, when astronauts relied on plastic bags and funnels, the UWMS is pretty sophisticated and offers more advanced features, including a urine collection device suitable for both male and female astronauts.

Big Bang Theory comparisons flood social media

Koch’s “space plumber” remark quickly sparked memes comparing her to Howard Wolowitz, played by Simon Helberg in The Big Bang Theory.




In the sitcom, Wolowitz famously designs a malfunctioning “Wolowitz Zero-Gravity Human Waste Disposal System” for the International Space Station. The character’s plumbing mishaps, including the fictional “Pishkin-Wolowitz Liquid Waste Disposal System," became recurring comedic elements.