[ad_1]
Imagine that an astronaut suddenly collapses during a spacewalk and dies of cardiac arrest just a few minutes later.
Thankfully, nothing like this has ever happened. While 21 people have died in space, it is believed to have been caused by a spacecraft malfunction that killed the entire crew, rather than a health issue that affected just one person. However, if a crew member dies and other crew members remain, something must be done with the remains. Otherwise, the body will begin to decompose and be at risk of contamination. One option? Release it into space.
In the harshness of space, how does a corpse decompose? And where does it end up?
Related: How long does it take for a corpse to rot?
in low pressure vacuum of spaceFluid from the surface of the body – skin, eyes, mouth, ears, lungs – quickly turns into gas. jimmy woo, chief engineer at the Space Health Translational Institute at Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, told Live Science. Even after death, blood vessels near the surface can rupture and cause bleeding, Wu added.
Wu said any remaining water in the body would likely freeze due to the low reference temperature in space. Fahrenheit minus 454.81 degrees (minus 270.45℃). Freezing in addition to fluid loss can create a mummified state, essentially preserving the remains. “It might look like some kind of dehydrated corpse that’s currently in space,” Wu said.
Any astronaut who goes into space without a spacesuit will meet this fate. What happens next depends on whether there are bacteria around.
Through research on the International Space Station (ISS), Bacteria can survive in space For at least three years. If the bacteria is still alive in the body, it will begin to digest it. Most of the universe is very cold, but space can also get very hot. Temperatures on the surface of the ISS can range from -328 °F to 392 °F.-200℃～200℃). In higher temperature environments, decomposition is greatly accelerated.
powerful radiation in space It can also have negative effects on the body, such as breaking carbon bonds and deteriorating skin and muscles.
After being ejected from the spacecraft, the dehydrated and decaying object will continue into orbit along the direction in which it was pushed, unless it encounters another object.
There is a lot of space debris and satellites around the Earth, so encountering them is “actually dangerous” and a dead body could come face to face. Miles HarrisA PhD student at University College London’s Institute for Risk and Disaster Risk Reduction told Live Science.
To avoid this risk, Recommended by NASA It then goes further into space and “leaves the planet’s orbit” before releasing the celestial body. “It’s a hard object, right?” Mr. Wu said. A collision between an object and a spacecraft or satellite can cause significant damage to both parties.
Even if a celestial body were to avoid collisions with satellites or space debris, over time it would slowly be drawn toward Earth by Earth’s gravitational pull. gravity, especially if the death occurred within low Earth orbit or less than approximately 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) from Earth. Eventually, in perhaps the most dramatic part of the corpse’s journey through space, it will re-enter the atmosphere and burn up.
Releasing the body from the spacecraft isn’t the only option after death. Space burial is also a possibility, but it comes with the risk of contaminating the planet’s surface. NASA is also developing body bags that can store remains onboard a spacecraft for 48 to 72 hours, long enough to return to Earth from the International Space Station. But when the trip is far-flung, like a Mars mission that involves a seven-month flight back to Earth, the crew needs to find other options.
As spaceflight moves further from Earth, NASA is preparing mission-death procedures. The commercial spaceflight industry also needs to plan for how to handle death in space, Wu said.
“I hope it never happens, but it could happen,” Harris said. And if that happens, you better be prepared.
[ad_2]
Source link
