What happens to the human body when it dies on Mars?

Living on Mars is already very dangerous and difficult, with many environmental challenges. Unfortunately, if you die on Mars, your body will become a natural mummy with bones preserved after tens of millions of years.

Currently, there are no official regulations on what happens to the human body in the event of death in space. NASA policy is that NASA leaders, international partners and aerospace organizations will make decisions together. However, this space agency deploys suitcases “death simulation”according to astronaut Chris Hadfield, former commander of the International Space Station (ISS).

Simulate an astronaut floating in space.

Simulate astronauts floating in space. (Photo: iStock).

“If someone died on a spacewalk, I would put them in an airtight capsule first. I would probably put them in a pressure suit. The body decomposes faster in a spacesuit.” Space Station , and we don’t want any odors or emissions. “To escape, it’s not sanitary. So we’re going to put them in suits and store them in a cool place on the space station.”Hadfield said.

If someone dies on the ISS, the problem can be resolved relatively quickly: Store temporarily in a cool place, then return to Earth. But for longer-term missions – for example to Mars – experts will need other solutions. Ejecting the dead into space is also an optionbut goes against the United Nations agreement to reduce space debris.

A research group created by NASA has proposed a mounting plan body (placed in a bag) on ​​a robotic arm outside the spaceship. The body will freeze and the arm will begin to vibrate the bag for 15 minutes until the body breaks into small pieces. Water evaporates from the bag through the vent, leaving about 25 kg of remains that can be brought back to Earth. According to Susanne Wiigh-Masak, an expert at eco-friendly funeral company Promessa, everything on board the ship needs to be kept to a minimum, measured and stored carefully because there isn’t much extra space.

So what happens when an astronaut dies on Mars? This could lead to a discussion between the mission’s astronauts and the team of experts on Earth. NASA does not want to pollute Mars and hopes to incinerate it to destroy all terrestrial bacteria.

If this solution proves impossible or if the entire crew experiences problems, they could be buried or left on the surface of Mars. On the surface of Mars, bodies will not decompose like on Earth. If they die during the day, the bacteria will begin the normal decomposition process. But at night, the body will freeze and the bacteria will be stopped. Bacteria free, soft tissue is safe and secure The dead began to become mummies on Mars.

Without the protection of the Earth’s atmosphere and magnetosphere, radiation will gradually destroy the body, but over a much longer period of time. Bones can remain viable for tens of millions of years.

Article source: VnExpress