Help - Search - Members - Calendar
Full Version: Death in Space
Unexplained Mysteries Discussion Forums > Science > Space and Astronomy
Cherus
Pardon my ignorance, but what would happen to you if you were tossed out into space without a space suit?
thanks
louie
no oxygen. freeze to death.
Waspie_Dwarf
QUOTE (Cherus @ Jan 15 2008, 07:19 PM) *
what would happen to you if you were tossed out into space without a space suit?

This subject was previously discussed in this thread: Do humans explode in the vacuum of space?. You should find the answer you are looking for there.
MID
QUOTE (Cherus @ Jan 15 2008, 02:19 PM) *
Pardon my ignorance, but what would happen to you if you were tossed out into space without a space suit?
thanks



Waspie's right...explore that link he provided.

Summary:

You'll be dead long before you freeze.
Unconscious within 10-12 seconds...death would peacefully follow within minutes.


Raptor
QUOTE (MID @ Jan 16 2008, 12:09 AM) *
You'll be dead long before you freeze.


How long do you think it would it take to freeze?

Body heat loss via radiation is ~140 W and the Sun's power output (at atmosphere) is ~1400 W m-2, not sure about infrared in particular, though. Must take a fair while...
Cherus
thx for reply and sry for the post
MID
QUOTE (Raptor @ Jan 15 2008, 07:29 PM) *
How long do you think it would it take to freeze?

Body heat loss via radiation is ~140 W and the Sun's power output (at atmosphere) is ~1400 W m-2, not sure about infrared in particular, though. Must take a fair while...



I don't know exactly, Raptor, but I will say that getting tossed out into vacuum, while rendering you unconscious in a matter of seconds, and killing you in a matter of minutes, will freeze you dependent on what kind of energy or not, you happen to be absorbing. If you're shielded from sunlight, your tissues will start losing their heat to the vacuum rather rapidly, but a "hard freeze" would take more time than it would to die.

If you're in the direct sunlight, a lot longer, especially if you happen to be spinning or rotating, so solar energy is being distributed all along the body. Some heating would actually take place, dependent upon how far away you're lifeless form happens to be from the Sun (and, depending on how you may be dressed). The farther away, the less warming effect. If you're out in Jupiter space, for instance...you'll find your poor body frozen solid for sure (you won't be absorbing much in the line of thermal radiation out there). If you were in cis lunar space, it would take alot longer. If you were in orbit around Earth, or the Moon, you'd have alternating periods of solar heating and rapid cooling. All told, there are too many variables and too many scenarios to determine how fast you'd freeze!

Waspie_Dwarf
QUOTE (Cherus @ Jan 16 2008, 11:19 AM) *
thx for reply and sry for the post

There is no need to apologise.
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.
Invision Power Board © 2001-2008 Invision Power Services, Inc.