An artist’s depiction of two astronauts on Mars. cokada/E+ by way of Getty Photographs
Emmanuel Urquieta, Baylor College of Medicine
Curious Kids is a collection for youngsters of all ages. You probably have a query you’d like an knowledgeable to reply, ship it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.
What occurs if somebody dies in space? – Guillermo, Palm Seaside, Florida
There’s no query that sending human beings to space is an awfully troublesome and dangerous proposition.
Since human space exploration started simply over 60 years in the past, 20 folks have died – 14 within the NASA space shuttle tragedies of 1986 and 2003, three cosmonauts throughout the 1971 Soyuz 11 mission, and three astronauts within the Apollo 1 launch pad fire in 1967.
Given how difficult human spaceflight is, it’s truly outstanding how few folks have misplaced their lives to this point. However NASA plans to ship a crew to the Moon in 2025 and astronauts to Mars in the next decade. Business spaceflight is becoming routine. As space journey turns into extra widespread, so does the chance that somebody may die alongside the way in which.
It brings to thoughts a dismal however mandatory query to ask: If somebody dies in space – what occurs to the physique?
Dying on the Moon and Mars
As a space medical doctor who works to seek out new methods to maintain astronauts wholesome, I and my workforce on the Translational Research Institute for Space Health wish to be certain space explorers are as wholesome as they are often for space missions.
Right here is how dying in space can be dealt with at the moment: If somebody died on a low-Earth-orbit mission – similar to aboard the International Space Station – the crew may return the physique to Earth in a capsule inside a matter of hours.
If it occurred on the Moon, the crew may return house with the physique in just some days. NASA already has detailed protocols in place for such events.
Due to that fast return, it’s probably that preservation of the physique wouldn’t be NASA’s main concern; as an alternative, the No. 1 precedence can be ensuring the remaining crew returns safely to Earth.
Issues can be totally different if an astronaut died through the 300 million-mile trip to Mars.
In that state of affairs, the crew most likely wouldn’t have the ability to flip round and return. As an alternative, the physique would probably return to Earth together with the crew on the finish of the mission, which might be a few years later.
Within the meantime, the crew would presumably protect the physique in a separate chamber or specialized body bag. The regular temperature and humidity contained in the space car would theoretically assist protect the physique.
However all these eventualities would apply provided that somebody died in a pressurized setting, like a space station or a spacecraft.
What would occur if somebody stepped outdoors into space without the protection of a spacesuit?
The astronaut would die virtually immediately. The lack of strain and the publicity to the vacuum of space would make it not possible for the astronaut to breathe, and blood and different physique fluids would boil.
What would occur if an astronaut stepped out onto the Moon or Mars and not using a spacesuit?
The Moon has practically no ambiance – a very tiny amount. Mars has a very thin atmosphere, and virtually no oxygen. So the end result can be about the identical as publicity to open space: suffocation and boiling blood.
What about burial?
Suppose the astronaut died after touchdown, whereas on the floor of Mars.
Cremation isn’t fascinating; it requires an excessive amount of power that the surviving crew wants for different functions. And burial isn’t a good suggestion, both. Micro organism and different organisms from the physique may contaminate the Martian surface. As an alternative, the crew would probably protect the physique in a specialised physique bag till it may very well be returned to Earth.
There are nonetheless many unknowns about how explorers would take care of a dying. It’s not simply the query of what to do with the physique. Serving to the crew take care of the loss, and serving to the grieving households again on Earth, are simply as vital as dealing with the stays of the one who died. However to actually colonize different worlds – whether or not the Moon, Mars or a planet outdoors our solar system – this grim state of affairs would require planning and protocols.
Whats up, curious children! Do you might have a query you’d like an knowledgeable to reply? Ask an grownup to ship your query to CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com. Please inform us your identify, age and town the place you reside.
And since curiosity has no age restrict – adults, tell us what you’re questioning, too. We received’t have the ability to reply each query, however we are going to do our greatest.
Emmanuel Urquieta, Professor of Area Medication and Emergency Medication, Baylor College of Medicine
This text is republished from The Conversation below a Inventive Commons license. Learn the original article.
