ANSWERS: 7
  • no, there aren't any bacteria either
  • Haha. Havn't a clue but i no it would be light.....? Id have to think not.good question!!!
  • A dead body would decay for a while since there are bacteria within the body that already have everything they need to continue living for a while. If the body were left naked on the moon's surface, it would alternately freeze and cook depending on the position of the moon relative to the sun, with temperatures ranging between -184 C and 101C. In the very dry lunar atmosphere, it would soon dry out. Decay would effectively stop once the body was dried.
  • 1) "General consensus seems to be that there would be some decomposition due to the presence of anaerobic bacteria, as well as dessication and slow weathering as a result of temperature changes." "Over eons, the top several meters of the lunar regolith are stirred up via the action of micrometeorites, through a process known as lunar gardening (wow, a red link). Since there is no appreciable atmosphere on the moon, even dust flecks the size of sand grains will leave tiny impact craters (since they are moving at several km/s). Over the very long term (i.e. many tens of millions of years) such micro impacts would ultimately grind the body down to nothingness." "Since either freezing or baking to the point where it would kill bacteria would be unlikely to take more than a few hours (the temperature in the sunlight is enough to melt lead). I'm pretty sure that bacterial action is a non-problem in something as thermally conductive as a corpse. So unless this body is tucked away on the edge of one of those very steep-rimmed craters, it would alternately freeze for two weeks then cook for two weeks. I'd say that dessication/mummification would be the most immediate effect (that's what happens to bodies left on cold/dry mountaintops) - but it's hard to know for sure. There is no oxygen - so the body wouldn't combust in the heat - but it would drive out all of the water. As for being bombarded by meteors - that could happen eventually - but it would be a very improbable event. There are no more meteors (per square mile) hitting the moon than there are entering the earths atmosphere." "I was about to make the same point as TotoBaggins - sunlight on the Moon is definitely not hot enough to melt lead. Granted that 123oC is still too hot for most bacteria to survive, but for hyperthermophiles such as Strain 121 it is just right. I agree that bacterial decay won't be a significant factor for our Moon corpse, but I don't think we can rule it out completely." "Using the rate of 1/km² or 1/1,000,000 m², and assuming a person's body has about 1 m² of exposed surface on the top side, it would still take, on average, a million seconds for a micrometeorite to hit. That's 11-12 days. So, to be completely destroyed by micrometeorites would take a long time. It would be a shriveled mummy long before that." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Archives/Science/2007_October_29#Drop_dead_on_the_Moon 2) "Bacteria and fungi carry out the majority biological decomposition, or "recycling" of organic molecules in dead organisms. Humans have a dense microbial flora living on the skin, and in the gastrointestinal and genitourinay systems. After death these organisms have free reign as host defenses are no longer present to keep them in their place (a veritable microbial smorgasbord..). However, their growth and metabolism require certain conditions. Oxygen?: Aerobes, microbes requiring oxygen, cannot grow and divide without it. However, after death, the host is anoxic due to the lack of O2 transport in the blood. No O2 in space either.. No oxygen?: Anaerobes represent the majority of organisms that colonize host environments. They cannot grow in the presence of O2. These guys carry out most biodecomposition reactions in normal environments. "Food source": Microbes need certain things to grow, a source of carbon (sugars, e.g.), nitrogen (found in proteins), and vitamins and minerals. Death provides the ultimate organic buffet if you happen to be a bacterium. Host proteins, sugars, fats, vitamins and minerals are suddenly there for the taking.. "Growth conditions": All microbes have an ideal temperature for growth - 37°C (98.6°F) is usually optimal for organisms colonizing mammalian intestines. Pressure can also play a role, particularly in the vacuum of space. The vacuum could possibly rupture cell membranes. However, the temperature of space ( close to abolute zero) will keep the body from decomposing once the microbes freeze. I don't know how long it takes for a dead body to freeze in outer space (not something I ponder regularly..). I'd guess significantly less than half an hour provided there was no insulation to slow the loss of heat, something more if the pour soul died in a space suit. You might be able to see some early signs of decomposing, but I doubt there would be any significant buildup of gases from anaerobic metabolism (H2, CO2, CH4 and others) or other indications of long-term decay." Source and further information: http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/1998-02/885056222.Mi.r.html 3) Further information: - "Would a dead body decompose in the vacuum of space?": http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/166041 - "Vacuum - Effects on humans and animals" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacuum#Effects_on_humans_and_animals - "What Happens To The Human Body In A Vacuum? Arnold Schwarzenegger - "Total Recall" Possible?": http://space.about.com/cs/basics/a/bodyvacuum1.htm - "Human Exposure to Vacuum": http://www.geoffreylandis.com/vacuum.html - "How would the unprotected human body react to the vacuum of outer space?": http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/answers/970603.html - "Effects on an unprotected human body in the vacuum of space": http://everything2.com/e2node/Effects%2520on%2520an%2520unprotected%2520human%2520body%2520in%2520the%2520vacuum%2520of%2520space - "If a dead human body was placed on the moon, would it be preserved forever?": http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090126002015AA6VBr7 - "How would a dead human body decompose in space compared to on earth? would no gravity play a factor?": http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071222235806AA1S7M7 - "Breathing Vacuum": http://astroprofspage.com/archives/102 - "Outer Space Exposure": http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=741#more-741 - "Will a corpse decompose in space or does a vacuum perfectly preserve a dead body?": http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question53031.html
  • The anaerobic bacteria would survive as long as there was carbon dioxide present!
  • How about mummify!
  • No. The aliens living there would eat any dead bodies we left after peeling away the wrapper to get to the gooey center.

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