Space exposure is the subjection of a human to the conditions of outer space, without protective clothing and beyond the Earth's atmosphere in a vacuum. Dangers include ebullism, hypoxia, hypocapnia, decompression sickness, extreme temperature variations, and cellular mutation and destruction from high energy photons and sub-atomic particles.
Video Space exposure
Explanation and history
The key concerns for a human without protective clothing beyond Earth's atmosphere are the following, listed roughly in the descending 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.
Decompression
Decompression carries a large mortal risk as it can result in ebullism, hypoxia, hypocapnia, and decompression sickness. Few humans have experienced these four conditions. The only known humans to have died of space exposure are the three crew members of the Soyuz 11 spacecraft: Vladislav Volkov, Georgi Dobrovolski and Viktor Patsayev. During re-entry on June 30, 1971, the ship's depressurization resulted in the death of the entire crew. Two other people were decompressed accidentally during space mission training programs on the ground, but both incidents were less than 5 minutes in duration, and both victims survived.
Decompression is a serious concern during the extra-vehicular activities (EVAs) of astronauts. Current EMU designs take this and other issues into consideration, and have evolved over time. A key challenge has been the competing interests of increasing astronaut mobility (which is reduced by high-pressure EMUs, analogous to the difficulty of deforming an inflated balloon relative to a deflated one) and minimising decompression risk. Investigators have considered pressurizing a separate head unit to the regular 71 kPa (10.3 psi) cabin pressure as opposed to the current whole-EMU pressure of 29.6 kPa (4.3 psi). In such a design, pressurization of the torso could be achieved mechanically, avoiding mobility reduction associated with pneumatic pressurization.
Ebullism
Ebullism, the formation of bubbles in body fluids due to reduced ambient pressure, is the most severe component of the experience. Technically, ebullism is considered to begin at an elevation of around 19 kilometres (12 mi) or pressures less than 6.3 kPa (47 mm Hg), known as the Armstrong limit. Experiments with other animals have revealed an array of symptoms that could also apply to humans. The least severe of these is the freezing of bodily secretions due to evaporative cooling. Severe symptoms, such as loss of oxygen in tissue, followed by circulatory failure and flaccid paralysis would occur in about 30 seconds. The lungs also collapse in this process, but will continue to release water vapour leading to cooling and ice formation in the respiratory tract. A rough estimate is that a human will have about 90 seconds to be recompressed, after which death may be unavoidable.
In 1960, Joseph Kittinger experienced localised ebullism during a 31 kilometres (19 mi) ascent in a helium-driven gondola. His right-hand glove failed to pressurise and his hand expanded to roughly twice its normal volume accompanied by disabling pain. His hand took about 3 hours to recover after his return to the ground.
Hypoxia
Unconsciousness is likely to occur within 14 seconds, primarily due to hypoxia; the much lower pressure outside the body causes rapid de-oxygenation of the blood. In 1966, NASA volunteer test subject Jim LeBlanc lost consciousness after approximately 15 seconds of being accidentally depressurized in a ground-based depressurization chamber. If a person is exposed to low pressures more slowly, hypoxia causes gradual loss of cognitive functions starting at about 3 kilometres (10,000 ft) altitude equivalent.
Hypocapnia
Decompression sickness
Less severe effects include the formation of nitrogen gas bubbles and consequent interference with organ function (decompression sickness), which is less severe in space than in diving. Meanwhile, reduction of blood carbon dioxide levels (hypocapnia) can alter the blood pH and indirectly contribute to nervous system malfunctions. If the person tries to hold their breath during decompression, the lungs may rupture internally.
International Space Station and Space Shuttle astronauts regularly work in Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMUs or space suits) that are at pressures less than 30% of the spacecraft to facilitate mobility, without experiencing noticeable decompression sickness. However, EMUs are pressurized with pure oxygen as to maintain an oxygen partial pressure equivalent with the 1 atm nitrogen-dominated ISS atmosphere. Significant prebreathing and decompression procedures are required when donning an EMU in order to avoid decompression sickness.
Temperature variations
Cellular mutation and destruction
A more severe long-term effect is the direct exposure to high energy photons (ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma) and energized subatomic particles (primarily protons).
Maps Space exposure
In science fiction
Spacing is a staple of science fiction, where it often occurs as a method of execution (or other sort of killing) by vacuum exposure in space--usually accomplished by ejecting the subject through the airlock of a spacecraft or space station without a space suit. Spacing is sometimes used as a means of dispatching enemies, usually by luring or herding the target(s) into an airlock, hangar or cargo bay with an exterior hatch and then flushing them out into space, or opportunistically double-opening an airlock--or even blowing out a window or hull panel--that happens to be near the target, with similar results. The primary cause of death would be asphyxia. An example can found in the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke in which astronaut David Bowman is exposed to the vacuum of space inside the Discovery One spacecraft after the computer controlling its life support malfunctions and opens the doors of the airlock. A passage in the novel claims,
Like any properly trained man in good health, he could survive in vacuum for at least a minute - if he had time to prepare for it. But there had been no time; he could only count on the normal fifteen seconds of consciousness before his brain was starved and anoxia overcame him. Even then, he could still recover completely after one or two minutes in vacuum - if he was properly recompressed; it took a long time for the body fluids to start boiling, in their various well-protected systems.
See also
- Effect of spaceflight on the human body
- Proton exposure
- Uncontrolled decompression
References
Source of article : Wikipedia
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