Outer space
Intergalactic space is the physical space between galaxies. Generally free of dust and debris, intergalactic space is very close to a total vacuum. Some theories put the average density of the Universe as the equivalent of one hydrogen atom per cubic meter[12][13]. The density of the Universe, however, is clearly not uniform; it ranges from relatively high density in galaxies (including very high density in structures within galaxies, such as planets, stars, and black holes) to conditions in vast voids that have much lower density than the Universe's average. The temperature is only 2.73 Kelvin[14]. NASA's COBE mission (Cosmic Background Explorer) measured the temperature as 2.725 +/- 0.002 K.
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Milestones
- Sea level - 101.3 kPa (1 atm; 1.013 bar; 29.92 in Hg; 760 mm Hg; 14.5 lbf/in²) of atmospheric pressure
- 3.9 km (12,500 ft) (2.4 miles) - FAA requires supplemental oxygen for aircraft pilots in unpressurized aircraft.[15]
- 5.0 km (16,400 ft) (3.1 miles) - 50 kPa of atmospheric pressure
- 5.3 km (17,400 ft) (3.3 miles) - Half of the Earth's atmosphere is below this altitude.
- 8.0 km (26,200 ft) (5 miles) - Death zone for human climbers
- 8.85 km (29,035 ft) (5.5 miles) - Summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain on Earth (26 kPa)
- 16 km (52,500 ft) (9.9 miles) - Pressurized cabin or pressure suit required.
- 18 km (59,100 ft) (11.2 miles) - Boundary between troposphere and stratosphere
- 20 km (65,600 ft) (12.4 miles) - Water at room temperature boils without a pressurized container. (The popular notion that bodily fluids would start to boil at this point is false because the body generates enough internal pressure to prevent it.)
- 24 km (78,700 ft) (14.9 miles) - Regular aircraft pressurization systems no longer function.
- 32 km (105,000 ft) (19.9 miles) - Turbojets no longer function.
- 34.7 km (113,740 ft) (21.5 miles) - Altitude record for manned balloon flight
- 45 km (147,600 ft) (28 miles) - Ramjets no longer function.
- 50 km (164,000 ft) (31 miles) - Boundary between stratosphere and mesosphere
- 53 km (174,000 ft) (33 miles) - Altitude record of Balloon.
- 80.5 km (264,000 ft) (50 miles) - Boundary between mesosphere and thermosphere. USA definition of space flight.
- 100 km (328,100 ft) (62.1 miles) - Kármán line, defining the limit of outer space according to the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. Aerodynamic surfaces ineffective due to low atmospheric density. Lift speed generally exceeds orbital velocity. Turbopause.
- 120 km (393,400 ft) (74.6 miles) - First noticeable atmospheric drag during re-entry from orbit
- 200 km (124.2 miles) - Lowest possible orbit with short-term stability (stable for a few days)
- 307 km (190.8 miles) - STS-1 mission orbit
- 350 km (217.4 miles) - Lowest possible orbit with long-term stability (stable for many years)
- 360 km (223.7 miles) - ISS average orbit, which still varies due to drag and periodic boosting.
- 390 km (242.3 miles) - Mir mission orbit
- 440 km (273.4 miles) - Skylab mission orbit
- 587 km (364.8 miles) - HST orbit
- 690 km (428.7 miles) - Boundary between thermosphere and exosphere, start of the inner Van Allen Belt
- 780 km (484.7 miles) - Iridium orbit
- 1,374 km (850 miles) - Highest altitude by a manned Earth-orbiting flight (Gemini XI with Agena Target Vehicle)
- 10,000 km (6,213 miles) - End of the inner Van Allen Belt
- 19,000 km (11,900 miles) - Start of the outer Van Allen Belt
- 20,200 km (12,600 miles) - GPS orbit
- 35,786 km (22,237 miles) - Geostationary orbit height
- 63,800 km (39,600 miles) - End of the outer Van Allen Belt
- 320,000 km (200,000 miles) - Lunar gravity exceeds Earth's (at Lagrange point)
- 348,200 km (238,700 miles) - lunar perigee (closet approach of the Moon)
- 402,100 km (249,900 miles) - lunar apogee (largest distance between Earth and Moon)
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See also
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References
- ^ Etymonline : Outer. Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
- ^ Etymonline: Space. Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
- ^ NASA Human Body in a Vacuum
- ^ a b c d e Harding, Richard M. (1989), Survival in Space: Medical Problems of Manned Spaceflight, London: Routledge, ISBN 0-415-00253-2.
- ^ Billings, Charles E. (1973). "Barometric Pressure", in edited by James F. Parker and Vita R. West: Bioastronautics Data Book, Second Edition, NASA. NASA SP-3006.
- ^ Human Exposure to Vacuum. Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
- ^ Webb P. (1968). "The Space Activity Suit: An Elastic Leotard for Extravehicular Activity". Aerospace Medicine 39: 376–383.
- ^ Czarnik, Tamarack R.. EBULLISM AT 1 MILLION FEET: Surviving Rapid/Explosive Decompression. Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
- ^ Linda Shiner. X-15 Walkaround: A short guide to the fastest airplane ever.. Air & Space Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-01-19.
- ^ Report of the Living With a Star Geospace Mission Definition Team. NASA (September, 2002).
- ^ LWS Geospace Missions. NASA.
- ^ Davidson, Keay & Smoot, George. Wrinkles in Time. New York: Avon, 1993: 158-163
- ^ Silk, Joseph. Big Bang. New York: Freeman, 1977: 299.
- ^ NASA COBE website[1]
- ^ FAR 91.211, http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgFAR.nsf/0/ba9afbf96dbc56f0852566cf006798f9!OpenDocument&ExpandSection=-3
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External links
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- Intergalactic Space, Natural History, Feb 1998
- Morgan Freeman's Space Exploration Channel "Our Space" on ClickStar
- Profits set to soar in outer space
- Newscientist Space.
- X PRIZE Foundation.
- Images of Earth and space taken from outer space
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