Our knowledge and conception about space today is more accurate than it was a hundred years ago. However, we still have flat earthers who believe that we live on a flat disk despite the ample scientific evidence to the contrary.
Then there are people who may not believe in such conspiracy theories but still have misconceptions about space. Space myths have also been propagated by science fiction movies as there are many facts which they get wrong about it.
Here we have compiled a list of 8 such myths about Space and if you believe any of these then it’s time to correct these facts in your brain.
The Sun is Yellowish Orange in Color
Well that’s how we have pictured Sun in our brains and that’s the color we used to paint it, in our drawing books. It’s true that the Sun appears Yellow or orange from the Earth depending on the time of the day. However, this happens because of the scattering of light when it passes through our atmosphere which contains different kinds of gas molecules and dust particles.
Photo Credit: International Space Station, NASA
The actual color which we see from outer space is bright White color. The Sun emits electromagnetic radiation in almost every spectrum but it’s only the light in the visible spectrum which us Humans can perceive. The sun emits its light in all the spectrums of the visible light which creates a bright white color like that emitted by a white led bulb.
We can Hear Sound or Explosions in Space
Science fiction movies like the Star War series and Marvel movies have elaborate fight scenes involving spaceships and lasers. The sound these ships make is perfectly audible and the explosions are loud and clear.
These movies may have painted a perception that hearing sound in space is a regular phenomenon. However, sound in empty space is not possible as it has no medium to transmit it from one place to the other. The sound on earth travels through a medium like air. It is even faster underwater and in solid substances like wood or metals.
So, hearing sound in empty space is not possible although you can hear it on another planet which has an atmosphere.
There’s Nothing in the Empty Space of the Universe
Well we have matter and then scientists are talking about the dark matter which doesn’t interact with light and forms the rest of the universe. However, we are not referring to dark matter but the actual matter or the elements or atoms which creates the visible universe.
Photo Credit: Apollo Mission, NASA
There may be nebulae in space which have gas and dust particles floating together. However, when most people think of the empty space they may think that those regions of space are free of this matter as there’s nothing there.
However, this is not true, even the empty space contains some atoms of elements like Hydrogen, cosmic rays particles, radiation from stars and gamma ray bursts and so on. In fact, hydrogen is so abundant in our universe that every cubic centimeter of it contains on average two of its atoms.
Then there are cosmic rays which are traveling at near light speed and are found almost everywhere in space. The surface of the moon is constantly bombarded with cosmic rays from space which alters the physical chemistry of the elements and compounds found on the moon.
These cosmic rays can even damage your DNA and can pass through space suits. However, you would get sick only if you receive a heavy dose and stay in outer space for a long duration.
You Would Explode or Burst Without a Spacesuit
This is one of the most common myths about space. In the Hollywood movie called Total Recall there’s a scene where Arnold Schwarzenegger breaks the helmet’s glass visor and his eyes and tongue bulge out like balloons.
Our bodies are supposed to stay on earth where the atmospheric pressure is the highest and it keeps decreasing as you go up in the atmosphere. In outer space this pressure is not present but our body still thinks that it’s on earth. Our heart keeps pumping blood with the same intensity and force.
Early space scientists thought that this would cause our bodies to explode. However, even without a space suit our body and the skin and muscles covering it are capable of handling the pressure generated by our heart. Our face, eyes and limbs may swell due to this pressure and the formation of gas bubbles in our blood; however, it won’t explode even without a space suit.
You Would Instantly Freeze to Death without a Spacesuit
The average temperature of the space is -270°C. If such temperatures ever occur on Earth, all life forms would freeze to death within minutes. This would make you think that a similar thing would happen to you if you do not have the protection of your space suit.
However, even without a space suit your body would remain within acceptable temperature range for a few minutes. On earth our bodies lose heat due to its transfer to the atmosphere which takes place through the air molecules which come in contact with our bodies. In outer space there is no medium to transfer this heat. The heat can only escape your body through radiation which takes time.
On the other hand if you are in space but are near a star like the sun then you would also receive energy in the form of radiation which may heat the exposed side of your body to abnormal temperatures as high as 120 degrees Celsius.
There’s No Gravity in Space
You may have seen videos from the ISS where astronauts move through space like a fish moving in water. This may give the impression that gravity is absent in space. However, gravity is never absent even in deep space. The pull of gravity on the astronauts at the international space station is just 10% weaker than that on earth. A 150 pound astronaut would still weigh 140 pounds on the International Space Station.
But we feel weightless because of the Orbit of the ISS which is in a constant state of free fall. It makes us feel weightless in the same way that we feel weightless when a plane takes a dive.
Even in deep space, you would still feel gravity, if you are still inside the solar system and the sun won’t let you escape, if you don’t have some kind of power or energy source needed to propel you forward.
Moving Through Asteroid Belt is Dangerous for Space Crafts
This is one of the most famous myths propagated by space movies. Asteroid belt is located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter and contains an estimated 1.5 million asteroids which are larger than a kilometer. There are millions of smaller ones with varying sizes.
The average distance between two average sized asteroids is almost 966,000 Kilometers. A plane passing through such a distance would have a very low chance of colliding with an asteroid even if it moves at near light speed. At the speed at which our space crafts move, they would have plenty of time to avoid them even if they are somehow in the way.
Photo Credit: ESA/Rosetta/MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/SSO/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA
In fact, it’s more difficult to land on an asteroid let alone bump into one. It took years and numerous orbital maneuvers for ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft to reach there, which finally landed the Philae Lander it was carrying. It was the first asteroid landing which took place on 12 November 2014 on the asteroid Churyumov Gerasimenko.
Only Saturn has Rings Around It
Photo Credit: Cassini Orbiter, Jet Propulsion Lab, CALTECH, NASA
When we hear the name of the planet Saturn; we always picture it with its elaborate set of rings around it. However, there are others which have their ring system, although not as magnificent and elaborate like those of Saturn.
Photo Credit: Voyager 2, Jet Propulsion Lab, CALTECH, NASA
Uranus and Neptune have their own ring system. These rings are not clearly visible from telescopes from Earth but there are pictures which were taken during Voyager 2’s Uranus flyby that clearly show these rings. Even Jupiter has asteroids and dust trapped around it which form kind of a ring system around the planet.