/sci/ - Science & Math

[Anonymous No.2967377]

quick question /sci/, can decomposition happen in space?

[Inurdaes !V1sPhobos. No.2967393]

Good question. I guess there would be some early decomposition but soon the body would be completely depleted of oxygen and the bacteria would begin to dry up/expand under vaccum?

[Anonymous No.2967404]

No, since there's no oxygen in the space

[Anonymous No.2967420]

dat earth moon sun proportion/distance

[pascal !n5Z3VuZapw No.2967452]

A thread earlier said people get sunburned within seconds of exposure. Im sure enough radiation will dwstroy a body

[Anonymous No.2967455]

>>2967404

Ever heard of anaerobic bacteria?

[Anonymous No.2967460]

No, not really. It doesn't happen in Antarctica either.

[Inurdaes !V1sPhobos. No.2967468]

>>2967455
I meant that because there would be no air pressure in the gut lining or some shit that the bacteria would begin swelling up or boiling from the fuck-all air pressure. I have heard that waterbears or whatever they're called can survive and flourish in a vaccum with harsh sunlight. Dunno about bacteria that live in humans.

[Anonymous No.2967487]

here's what happens:

1) object dies
2) object slowly loses heat due to radiation, will freeze in maybe 2 weeks.
3) depending on position of object relative to nearest star, the star may bake the item via radiation.
4) due to a lack of oxygen, all oxygen reliant bacteria die
5) internal bacteria continue to function and will likely produce waste gasses, the body will swell and burst. All exposed bacteria die.
6) moisture boils away from the opened carcass, causing a rapid loss of heat.
7) if the body is near a star, the body mummifies as it is dried completely, if it is not, it freeze dries.
8) body is preserved until it is either baked into carbon by a nearby star, smashed by debris, or falls into the gravity well of a nearby planet or star, after which it burns up upon re-entry into an atmosphere, or is dashed to pieces on the planet's surface.

[Anonymous No.2967496]

>>2967468

Water bears are pretty amazing, however they'd only survive in a dormant state.

Anaerobic bacteria would survive for a short time, allowing for some decomposition, but would eventually succumb to the low temperature environment.

[Anonymous No.2967523]

>>2967496
>eventually succumb to the low temperature environment.

inside the body of the dead thing, they'd survive for quite a while.
venting heat by radiation alone is horribly inefficient and takes many many hours for any signifigant change, not to mention the internal decay would warm the carcass a bit.
It would decay enough that the waste gases would burst the belly of the carcass, whereupon the now exposed internals will start to boil away their moisture to equalize pressure.

as long as the body is unbroken though, it'll stay whole.

[Anonymous No.2967525]

>>2967487

>object dies
>mfw objects are rarely alive in the first place

[Anonymous No.2967554]

>>2967525
a living thing is an object.

I was tryng to be objective.

ba dum tish.

[Anonymous No.2967564]

>>2967455
>Implying anaerobic bacteria don't have short life.

[Anonymous No.2967571]

>>2967564
>implying they don't reproduce

[Anonymous No.2969259]

>>2967571

implying anaerobic bacteria can live in a vacuum

[Anonymous No.2969287]

>>2967377
>can decomposition happen in space?

No. The microorganisms necessary cannot survive, nor can the chemical processes proceed.

That's not to say that space weathering can't break down the material anyway under the right conditions, though.