Interesting things about space

[RCA]

Gödel’s incompleteness theorems is definitely a mind fu*k.

http://listverse.com/2010/11/04/10-stra ... -universe/




And it has a smell:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/cre ... cles4.html

[alms24sebring]

Complicated.. but very interesting. Some of those concepts are hard to understand happening and why the Universe is the way it is. I liked the theories of the different black holes and most of the theory made since, as far as the formation and behavior of them. The only thing I still cannot understand is how a black hole can let u travel into another deminsion of equal or opposite characteristics (white holes, black light). Would that mean also that the other demension would be compressing back to the start of a big bang? I think the gravity of a black hole can make exotic particles at the center, and even crush the smallest particles to pure energy, but no traveling through to an opposite universe.

I have to read some of these again when people arent around me talking loud as s*** when they are right next to each other. It's interesting to hear of these new concepts of physics and quantum mechanics that we've never really heard of. I'm not getting the vacuum energy thing either.

Thanks for the good link

[Dattebayo]

I'm not getting the vacuum energy thing either.

It's part of the Hawking Radiation theory. Space is supposedly filled with matter and anti-matter particles that spontaneously appear and annihilate each other every few milliseconds, creating "vacuum energy".

Hawking Radiation is when said reaction happens near a black hole and the anti-matter particle is absorbed by the singularity, leaving only it's companion to radiate off into space.

[s0m3th1ngAZ]

You can survive in space.
At least for as long as you can hold your breath. Well..holding your breath would be bad...best to blow it all out or you damage your respiration system.
There is nothing to radiate heat away from your body so the whole -423 degrees thing doesn't matter and as long as you hold your nose and close your eyes, the vacuum will have little affect on your body. Really bad sunburn and swelling of skin will take place though.
Really cool article too.

[RCA]

And it has a smell:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/cre ... cles4.html

I wanted to make sure you guys didn't miss this:

It reminded me of my college summers where I labored for many hours with an arc welding torch repairing heavy equipment for a small logging outfit. It reminded me of pleasant sweet smelling welding fumes. That is the smell of space.

[s0m3th1ngAZ]

That's pretty much exactly what I think space would smell like.

[Jesda]

Well, that description of the smell is as close as I will ever get to space, and this may be the most uniquely educational thing I've ever experienced on the internet.

[C-Kwik]

There is nothing to radiate heat away from your body so the whole -423 degrees thing doesn't matter and as long as you hold your nose and close your eyes, the vacuum will have little affect on your body. Really bad sunburn and swelling of skin will take place though.
Really cool article too.

Actually, electromagnetic radiation still takes place. While heat can not transfer through a vacuum, infrared heat can, as it is an EM wave. Not sure at what rate we emit IR EM though, so it may be moot in contrast to the other problems one faces in such a situation...

[Alfador]

There is nothing to radiate heat away from your body so the whole -423 degrees thing doesn't matter and as long as you hold your nose and close your eyes, the vacuum will have little affect on your body. Really bad sunburn and swelling of skin will take place though.
Really cool article too.

Actually, electromagnetic radiation still takes place. While heat can not transfer through a vacuum, infrared heat can, as it is an EM wave. Not sure at what rate we emit IR EM though, so it may be moot in contrast to the other problems one faces in such a situation...

You don't lose heat through IR very quickly. Not quicker than your breath would run out, that's for sure. In fact, if I had to guess I'd say body temp probably rises with your body burning calories with the expectation that the heat will have somewhere to go. You'd probably have issues with decompression sickness, assuming you survived, and cosmic rays/solar radiation would probably do a number on you. Get hit by a micrometeroid without the mylar of a suit and you're probably going to have a hole punched right through you, but I've got no idea what the odds are of that would be for any given length of time.

As for the content of the article, I've given up on most of it. The theories make scientific sense, if you understand that stuff I guess, in the context of everyday experiences it seems like witch-doctoring.

[_b.jaye_]

as general as the "smell" article is, it makes me wonder if theres not a different, less exciting explaination for it. like maybe some cutting oil residue on some hardware getting diffused and dispersing all over everything. not to say this is exactly what i thinks to blame, but something of the sort doesnt seem as hard to imagine.

[RCA]

^ True, but on every article of cloth he smells?

[Alfador]

Space is a vacuum, but it's hardly devoid of particles. Also consider that "space" at the level of the ISS and the space shuttles still has a very thin dusting of atmosphere. It's not unreasonable to suspect that some free metallic particles would be floating around in an almost vaporous format. Come to think of it, it could be the result of the vacuum acting on the surfaces of the suits and equipment. It's probably not so much the smell of space, as the smell of the effects of space on terrestrial materials.

[s0m3th1ngAZ]

Space is a vacuum, but it's hardly devoid of particles. Also consider that "space" at the level of the ISS and the space shuttles still has a very thin dusting of atmosphere. It's not unreasonable to suspect that some free metallic particles would be floating around in an almost vaporous format. Come to think of it, it could be the result of the vacuum acting on the surfaces of the suits and equipment. It's probably not so much the smell of space, as the smell of the effects of space on terrestrial materials.

Didn't think of that...so he's smelling the oxides subliming off the fabric and metals?

[Dattebayo]

Take a whiff of that background radiation! That's good space!