Space Underpants!

Throw away those 20th century boxers with holes in them, time for some 21st Century Space Underwear (from Japan naturally): designed to kill bacteria, absorb water, insulate the body, dry quickly, resist flames and do away with that pressing concern of modern fashion — static cling. They're also comfy and stylish.

Smell wars: Japanese astronaut testing stink-free underwear

In space, no one can hear you scream, "Change your shorts!" So, in the name of odor-free orbiting, the first Japanese astronaut to live on the International Space Station is the guinea pig for some new high-tech underwear developed at Japan Women's University, Reuters tells us.

Koichi Wakata's zero-gravity "J-ware" is designed to kill bacteria, absorb water, insulate the body, dry quickly, resist flames and do away with that pressing concern of modern fashion — static cling. They're also comfy and stylish.

"He can wear his trunks more than a week," said Koji Yanagawa, an official with the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Another Japanese astronaut gave the clothes a dry run last year during a shuttle mission. "The other astronauts become very sweaty, but he doesn't have any sweat. He didn't need to hang his clothes to dry," Yanagawa added.

The new space skivvies are likely to cut down on the amount of clothing sent to the ISS, which lacks a laundry room.

Once development is finished, the Japanese space agency plans to make the clothes available to NASA and its other space station partners. After that, look for them at your local mall.