Human exposure to vacuum..... What happens after 2 minutes?

Hello,

I have a question I have been thinking about for a while now. I am interested in what happens to the human body, when exposed to the vacuum of space. I know that you have 10 seconds before you go unconcious, and after that, I know about the paralysis, and going blind, convulsions, and the body swelling up. I also know, or have read that it is possible to be saved after about a minute and thirty seconds, which I think is amazing. But what I cannot find information on, and is my question to you, is what happens after the 2 minutes? What happens to the remains, if no one is around to pull you back in?





[edit on 29-10-2008 by schism85]

blood wil boil at body temperature...

This is such a great question. I await the answer as well.

How about instant freezing? I am not sure how long it takes but I am sure it is pretty quick.

reply to post by damwel


I thought of that too. But it seems that is just a myth.

Would You Freeze?

No.

A few recent Hollywood films showed people instantly freezing solid when exposed to vacuum. In one of these, the scientist character mentioned that the temperature was "minus 273"-- that is, absolute zero.

But in a practical sense, space doesn't really have a temperature-- you can't measure a temperature on a vacuum, something that isn't there. The residual molecules that do exist aren't enough to have much of any effect. Space isn't "cold," it isn't "hot", it really isn't anything.

What space is, though, is a very good insulator. (In fact, vacuum is the secret behind thermos bottles.) Astronauts tend to have more problem with overheating than keeping warm.

If you were exposed to space without a spacesuit, your skin would most feel slightly cool, due to water evaporating off you skin, leading to a small amount of evaporative cooling. But you wouldn't freeze solid!

From this site

That site explains what happens to your body within the first minute and thirty seconds, but doesn't explain much after that. I can't find any information anywhere on what happens after the initial minute thirty, 2 minutes.





[edit on 29-10-2008 by schism85]

imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov...

This is probably the most unexpected and interesting thread in some time!

I guess in the vacuum of space you would need some sort of material to "transmit" temperature. On earth, a cold wind is felt thanks to cooled oxygen, water molecules as well as other things.

We usually say "the water (or air) is too cold or too warm", while others say the wind is. But the wind is not. The wind carries cooled or heated molecules of various elements that transmit that sensation on contact. Some things can radiate temperature within proximity, not just on contact.

As they said in the article, there's really nothing in space to make that necessary contact.

Starred and flagged.

[edit on 29-10-2008 by Atlantican]

I, too, am waiting for the answer on this one - it's a very interesting question. I've always been interested in these topics...

Oh wow! Great post OP!

I can't wait to find this out either! I've always wondered about things like this. Seeing as how we can recreate a vaccum here on earth... is it really the same as a vaccum in space? Is there a difference?

Again... great post! I'm excited to find out this stuff!!!!

Iam glad to see you all have taken an interest in my topic, that is awesome. I was a bit hesitant to post my question. I really do hope someone on here can give us an educated answer. I have been wondering about this for awhile now, and no one seems to know, or they just don't bother to explain, thinking nobody would be interested in what happens to the human body after death in space. Hopefully, someone will shed some light on the topic soon.

[edit on 29-10-2008 by schism85]

Well when we are under immense pressure we are crushed. So on vacuum, where there's no pressure, we expand and break into smaller and smaller pieces until our body fluids and solid remains find a low energy state and occupy a large portion of space. If a human was put on a container, then it would occupy it and stop expanding, creating an atmosphere and thus pressure. If a human is ejected into space it would just keep spraying away.

I guess.

Tool equals great music, though.

edit: spelling


[edit on 29/10/2008 by kingsnake]

Originally posted by kingsnake
Well when we are under immense pressure we are crushed. So on vacuum, where there's no pressure, we expand and break into smaller and smaller pieces until our body fluids and solid remains find a low energy state and occupy a large portion of space. If a human was put on a container, then it would occupy it and stop expanding, creating an atmosphere and thus pressure. If a human is ejected into space it would just keep spraying away.

I guess.

Tool equals great music, though.

edit: spelling


[edit on 29/10/2008 by kingsnake]

That is a great answer. I could see that happening. I thought maybe we would just eventually be broken down into molecules, considering all the water vapor would just seep right out of us, we would swell up and the ebullism would tear apart our skin and maybe eventually we would just turn to tiny little particles. Just a guess.

Hell yeah, Tool is great.



[edit on 29-10-2008 by schism85]

reply to post by schism85

I am curious about space being a "vacuum" at all. There would not be enough oxygen for the sun to emit flames ar fire if indeed space had a vacuum effect...please correct me.

@anonymous: the flames you see here on Earth are consequence of entirely different chemical reactions than the "flames" you see on the sun.... heck plenty of the "flames" on the sun come from nuclear reactions.... I advise you the search on the internet, what are nuclear reactions and how stars form, it's very interesting, if you are curious

@schism: if we do this experiment in a container I doubt we would divide into molecules or even into cells, cause there are considerable forces between cells. Though, probably in extreme vacuum, the cells could enter plasmolysis (their interior "dries", water exits the cell) and eventually the cell's membrane could collapse.
But in space eventually we would be cut up to little molecules due to all the radiations.

Edit: i saw this anonymous post under the typing reply box and when i posted the reply, the anonymous post wasn't there. I guess it's being reviewed before being officially posted.

[edit on 29/10/2008 by kingsnake]

I am leaning towards surviving. We have about 14PSI on us all the time, exept when hiking up mountains or flying in unpressurised aircraft. If you were to control the evacuation of air molecules into a "vacuum" then the body would not get the "bends" and the body may get used to the unpressure, although the skin is an organ, I don't know how much oxygen the skin needs to live. I know the human body can withstand even a few psi and still be survivalble, Good question I need to find the links to the facts.

Originally posted by schism85

That is a great answer. I could see that happening. I thought maybe we would just eventually be broken down into molecules, considering all the water vapor would just seep right out of us, we would swell up and the ebullism would tear apart our skin and maybe eventually we would just turn to tiny little particles. Just a guess.

This is an myth.

You would not swell up and pop like a cartoon.

You would, however, get a very bad dose of the bends and die quickly in extreme pain if you were not depressurized correctly.

reply to post by Dermo


Yes its like opening a can of soda, the compressed co2 is released in an uncontrolled explosion, but if you were to release the pressure slowly then you can control the "out gassing" Same with the human body, if you can control the vacuum than the blood would not form bubbles and get the "bends" and eventually adapt to the vaccum. It would take a lot more than 2 minutes though.


[edit on 29-10-2008 by 38181]

Never thought of this before. Great post. Can't wait to hear some more replies. Wish I could offer something other then a S&F.

@ou_sooners_19: would you stop teasing that rabbit already

REPLY TO DERMO:

My reply isnt working.




This is an myth.

You would not swell up and pop like a cartoon.

You would, however, get a very bad dose of the bends and die quickly in extreme pain if you were not depressurized correctly.

No, you do swell to twice your original size.

Some degree of consciousness will probably be retained for 9 to 11 seconds (see chapter 2 under Hypoxia). In rapid sequence thereafter, paralysis will be followed by generalized convulsions and paralysis once again. During this time, water vapor will form rapidly in the soft tissues and somewhat less rapidly in the venous blood. This evolution of water vapor will cause marked swelling of the body to perhaps twice its normal volume unless it is restrained by a pressure suit.

From Here

Also

The key concerns for a human without protective clothing beyond Earth’s atmosphere are the following, listed roughly in the ascending order of mortal significance: ebullism, hypoxia, hypocapnia, decompression sickness, extreme temperature variations and cellular mutation and destruction from high energy photons and (sub-atomic) particles.[1]

From Here

On Ebullism Wiki

Symptoms of ebullism include bubbles in the membranes of the mouth and eyes, swelling of the skin, and bubbles in the blood. Blood circulation and breathing may be impaired or stopped. The brain tissue may be starved of oxygen because of blockage of arteries, and the lungs may swell and hemorrhage. Death results unless recompression is rapid enough to reduce the bubbles before tissue damage occurs

[edit on 29-10-2008 by schism85]

Originally posted by schism85
Hello,

my question to you, is what happens after the 2 minutes? What happens to the remains, if no one is around to pull you back in?

[edit on 29-10-2008 by schism85]

I re-read your post, my answer is NOTHING, the main factors is A)how close the body is to the sun, B) If the body is direct sunlight, radiation would boil the flesh) C) if the body was in the shadow away from the sun it would eventually cool off and freeze.

The body may or may not retain the fluids and could be just another freeeze dried peice of meat floating around.

Decay would be nil since there is no oxygen to promote decomposition.

[edit on 29-10-2008 by 38181]