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Effects on humans and animals
See also: Human adaptation to space
This painting, An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump by Joseph Wright of Derby, 1768, depicts an experiment performed by Robert Boyle in 1660.
Humans and animals exposed to vacuum will lose consciousness after a few seconds and die of hypoxia within minutes, but the symptoms are not nearly as graphic as commonly depicted in media and popular culture. Blood and other body fluids do boil when their pressure drops below 6.3 kPa, (47 torr) the vapour pressure of water at body temperature.[3] This condition is called ebullism. The steam may bloat the body to twice its normal size and slow circulation, but tissues are elastic and porous enough to prevent rupture. Ebullism is slowed by the pressure containment of blood vessels, so some blood remains liquid.[4][5] Swelling and ebullism can be restrained by containment in a flight suit. Shuttle astronauts wear a fitted elastic garment called the Crew Altitude Protection Suit (CAPS) which prevents ebullism at pressures as low as 2 kPa (15 torr).[6] Rapid evaporative cooling of the skin will create frost, particularly in the mouth, but this is not a significant hazard.
Animal experiments show that rapid and complete recovery is normal for exposures shorter than 90 seconds, while longer full-body exposures are fatal and resuscitation has never been successful.[7] There is only a limited amount of data available from human accidents, but it is consistent with animal data. Limbs may be exposed for much longer if breathing is not impaired.[3] Robert Boyle was the first to show in 1660 that vacuum is lethal to small animals.
During 1942, in one of a series of experiments on human subjects for the Luftwaffe, the Nazi regime experimented on prisoners in Dachau concentration camp by exposing them to low pressure.
Cold or oxygen-rich atmospheres can sustain life at pressures much lower than atmospheric, as long as the density of oxygen is similar to that of standard sea-level atmosphere. The colder air temperatures found at altitudes of up to 3 km generally compensate for the lower pressures there.[3] Above this altitude, oxygen enrichment is necessary to prevent altitude sickness, and spacesuits are necessary to prevent ebullism above 19 km.[3] Most spacesuits use only 20 kPa (150 torr) of pure oxygen, just enough to sustain full consciousness. This pressure is high enough to prevent ebullism, but simple evaporation of blood can still cause decompression sickness and gas embolisms if not managed.
Rapid decompression can be much more dangerous than vacuum exposure itself. Even if the victim does not hold his breath, venting through the windpipe may be too slow to prevent the fatal rupture of the delicate alveoli of the lungs.[3] Eardrums and sinuses may be ruptured by rapid decompression, soft tissues may bruise and seep blood, and the stress of shock will accelerate oxygen consumption leading to hypoxia.[8] Injuries caused by rapid decompression are called barotrauma. A pressure drop as small as 13 kPa (100 torr), which produces no symptoms if it is gradual, may be fatal if occurs suddenly.[3]
Some extremophile microrganisms, such as Tardigrades, can survive vacuum for a period of days.
[edit] Historical interpretation
See also: Human adaptation to space
This painting, An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump by Joseph Wright of Derby, 1768, depicts an experiment performed by Robert Boyle in 1660.
Humans and animals exposed to vacuum will lose consciousness after a few seconds and die of hypoxia within minutes, but the symptoms are not nearly as graphic as commonly depicted in media and popular culture. Blood and other body fluids do boil when their pressure drops below 6.3 kPa, (47 torr) the vapour pressure of water at body temperature.[3] This condition is called ebullism. The steam may bloat the body to twice its normal size and slow circulation, but tissues are elastic and porous enough to prevent rupture. Ebullism is slowed by the pressure containment of blood vessels, so some blood remains liquid.[4][5] Swelling and ebullism can be restrained by containment in a flight suit. Shuttle astronauts wear a fitted elastic garment called the Crew Altitude Protection Suit (CAPS) which prevents ebullism at pressures as low as 2 kPa (15 torr).[6] Rapid evaporative cooling of the skin will create frost, particularly in the mouth, but this is not a significant hazard.
Animal experiments show that rapid and complete recovery is normal for exposures shorter than 90 seconds, while longer full-body exposures are fatal and resuscitation has never been successful.[7] There is only a limited amount of data available from human accidents, but it is consistent with animal data. Limbs may be exposed for much longer if breathing is not impaired.[3] Robert Boyle was the first to show in 1660 that vacuum is lethal to small animals.
During 1942, in one of a series of experiments on human subjects for the Luftwaffe, the Nazi regime experimented on prisoners in Dachau concentration camp by exposing them to low pressure.
Cold or oxygen-rich atmospheres can sustain life at pressures much lower than atmospheric, as long as the density of oxygen is similar to that of standard sea-level atmosphere. The colder air temperatures found at altitudes of up to 3 km generally compensate for the lower pressures there.[3] Above this altitude, oxygen enrichment is necessary to prevent altitude sickness, and spacesuits are necessary to prevent ebullism above 19 km.[3] Most spacesuits use only 20 kPa (150 torr) of pure oxygen, just enough to sustain full consciousness. This pressure is high enough to prevent ebullism, but simple evaporation of blood can still cause decompression sickness and gas embolisms if not managed.
Rapid decompression can be much more dangerous than vacuum exposure itself. Even if the victim does not hold his breath, venting through the windpipe may be too slow to prevent the fatal rupture of the delicate alveoli of the lungs.[3] Eardrums and sinuses may be ruptured by rapid decompression, soft tissues may bruise and seep blood, and the stress of shock will accelerate oxygen consumption leading to hypoxia.[8] Injuries caused by rapid decompression are called barotrauma. A pressure drop as small as 13 kPa (100 torr), which produces no symptoms if it is gradual, may be fatal if occurs suddenly.[3]
Some extremophile microrganisms, such as Tardigrades, can survive vacuum for a period of days.
[edit] Historical interpretation
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