What would happen to a dead body in space?
Let's imagine an astronaut suddenly collapses during a spacewalk and dies of cardiac arrest only minutes later. Thankfully, this has never happened. While 21 people have died in space , spacecraft malfunctions that killed the entire crew, rather than health issues that affected only one person, have been to blame. But if a crewmember did die and others remained, they would have to do something with the body — or else risk contamination as the body began to decay. One option? Release it into space. Out in the harshness of space, how would a dead body break down? And where could it end up? Related: How long does it take for a body to decompose? In the low-pressure vacuum of space , any liquid from the body's surface — the skin, eyes, mouth, ears and lungs — would immediately turn to gas, Jimmy Wu , chief engineer at the Translational Research Institute for Space Health at the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, told Live Science. Blood vessels near the surface cou...