Why can't dead astronauts be left in space?

Science and culture 19 February, 2024 11:28

Dead astronauts cannot be ejected from the spaceship, as their body will incinerate and may collide with satellites or space shuttles, causing serious damage to them. Researchers at the Translational Research Institute for Space Health at the Baylor College of Medicine in the US state of Texas have come to this conclusion, and their respective research was published on the Livescience portal.

Dr. Jimmy Wu, chief engineer at the aforesaid institute, explained that in a vacuum, all the liquid in a person's skin will instantly evaporate, and the water in the body will freeze, so the body will harden in space and resemble a mummy. Moreover, a collision of a satellite or a spacecraft with a dead astronaut is equivalent to a collision with a meteorite, which will lead to malfunctions.

In addition, the corpse can be subjected to the gravity of any planet or constellation, after which biological contamination of the celestial body will occur. Experts are sure that the dead astronaut will gradually turn into dust under the influence of radiation; but this will take many years.

Until now, there have never been situations in the space industry where astronauts had to “get rid of” a dead friend in space. However, the International Space Station has special bags that can hold the deceased for 72 hours to bring them to Earth.

The aforesaid researcher noted that it is about long-term flights, for example, to Mars.

At the same time, it is not possible to leave a dead person in a spaceship. Otherwise, the crew may become infected due to the decomposition process.

The ideal option, according to the specialist, is to burn the body in the Earth's atmosphere. But if the spaceship is already on its way to distant planets, then other options should be sought, and science has not yet found them.