That's not correct, any mass turns into a black hole if it's smaller than its Schwarzschild radius. That's a radius of 3km for a mass equal to the sun.
Our sun is too small to go super nova, so there is no know natural process to turn the sun into a black hole. But stars lose a lot of mass during super nova so black holes with a mass of the sun are definitely possible. (AFAIK Hawking-radiation has not been confirmed yet, this would be a mechanism how black holes can lose mass.)
In theory, high-energy particle accelerators could produce black holes with mass smaller than an atom but they should evaporate quickly.
Never say never... in fact you stated below some conditions where it COULD happen. It's not a myth if it actually happens, no matter how long it takes...
Another myth would be that you would freeze to death in space because the temperature there is just a few kelvins. They did this mistake in Sunshine. The truth is, freezing requires medium (on Earth, it's the air) to slow down movement of molecules. Of course, heating up also requires medium, so one would freeze to death anyways (I guess, suffocation would precede it), but not instantly.
nasa proved it, accidentally, in 1966. a pressure suit test went wrong. 30 seconds of vacuum exposure. no blood boiling, no exploding, just a loss of consciousness after 12 seconds. no permanent damage either, though animal experiments from the 50s and 60s showed that much longer than 30 seconds and permanent damage becomes more likely (like blindness, etc).
I'm not totally sure how it would work.. but there is no air to conduct the heat out of your body. Heat loss is very much a function of conductivity. That's why 60 degree air feels pretty good, even in shorts, but you won't find it so pleasant in 60 degree water. Water is a better conductor of heat and essentially sucks it out of you.
One of the biggest problems future space ships will face is getting rid of waste heat. It won't naturally conduct into space that readily.
That said.. I still think you'd freeze at some point, but probably not instantly.
Did no one catch that they said "Here's a pic of the asteroid belt in our solar system" and it is clearly a computer generated image? Even further, if you follow the Wikipedia link you'll discover that it's actually an artist's conception of the "closest known planetary system to our own, called Epsilon Eridani"
Think of an old-fashioned vacuum thermos, the glass kind that kept coffee hot for hours. Space is a vacuum, and a vacuum is an extremely poor conductor of heat.
There are three basic kinds of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radiation. If you're not touching anything there is no conduction, and since there is no air there is no convection. Therefore you can only radiate heat, and you'll lose it about as fast as your coffee in a vacuum thermos. (With a lot of small variations.)
You may have ruptured ear drums, and a lot of bruising as small capillaries burst, but if you remember to exhale quickly as you depressurize, you'll have a few seconds to find the switch to turn the air back on before you black out.
brooks007Jan 24, 2012Buried
Title should read: 6 Myths uneducated people believe about space (Thanks to being uneducated )
maixJan 24, 2012Buried
That's not correct, any mass turns into a black hole if it's smaller than its Schwarzschild radius. That's a radius of 3km for a mass equal to the sun.
Our sun is too small to go super nova, so there is no know natural process to turn the sun into a black hole. But stars lose a lot of mass during super nova so black holes with a mass of the sun are definitely possible. (AFAIK Hawking-radiation has not been confirmed yet, this would be a mechanism how black holes can lose mass.)
In theory, high-energy particle accelerators could produce black holes with mass smaller than an atom but they should evaporate quickly.
superkendallJan 24, 2012Buried
Never say never... in fact you stated below some conditions where it COULD happen. It's not a myth if it actually happens, no matter how long it takes...
mreloadsJan 24, 2012Buried
Another myth would be that you would freeze to death in space because the temperature there is just a few kelvins. They did this mistake in Sunshine. The truth is, freezing requires medium (on Earth, it's the air) to slow down movement of molecules. Of course, heating up also requires medium, so one would freeze to death anyways (I guess, suffocation would precede it), but not instantly.
whacklyJan 25, 2012Buried
nasa proved it, accidentally, in 1966. a pressure suit test went wrong. 30 seconds of vacuum exposure. no blood boiling, no exploding, just a loss of consciousness after 12 seconds. no permanent damage either, though animal experiments from the 50s and 60s showed that much longer than 30 seconds and permanent damage becomes more likely (like blindness, etc).
neotechniJan 24, 2012Buried
"Never say never..."
True. If human history has taught us anything, it's that we're inherently bad at defining permanent limitations.
computerczarJan 25, 2012Buried
We already have artificial gravity.
Two words: "Boot Magnets" Yea that's the ticket.
ridgerunner5Jan 24, 2012Buried
Radiation from the sun causes warmth. So you can heat up in a vacuum by being in direct sunlight.
duncan202Jan 24, 2012Buried
I'm not totally sure how it would work.. but there is no air to conduct the heat out of your body. Heat loss is very much a function of conductivity. That's why 60 degree air feels pretty good, even in shorts, but you won't find it so pleasant in 60 degree water. Water is a better conductor of heat and essentially sucks it out of you.
One of the biggest problems future space ships will face is getting rid of waste heat. It won't naturally conduct into space that readily.
That said.. I still think you'd freeze at some point, but probably not instantly.
whacklyJan 25, 2012Buried
physics ftw. yes i do.
whacklyJan 25, 2012Buried
also this http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/118/would-a-glass-of-water-in-space-freeze-or-boil
whacklyJan 25, 2012Buried
and this http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SpaceIsCold
chadsfordJan 25, 2012Buried
Did no one catch that they said "Here's a pic of the asteroid belt in our solar system" and it is clearly a computer generated image? Even further, if you follow the Wikipedia link you'll discover that it's actually an artist's conception of the "closest known planetary system to our own, called Epsilon Eridani"
AstrocrapperJan 25, 2012Buried
I think people think the sun is yellow because when you look at it, its yellow.
superkendallJan 24, 2012Buried
Speak for yourself.
lornefsJan 24, 2012Buried
That's different because you have tons of water pressure squeezing the suit.
Not so in space.
neotechniJan 24, 2012Buried
Sadly, one of them is that we'll be able to travel between planets in a few hours/days... Or that we'll be able to have huge starships.
Not till we get replicators, inertial dampers, deflector fields, and artificial gravity for starters
neotechniJan 24, 2012Buried
"A black hole with the same mass of our Sun wouldn't exist. "
True, but it was just an example.
"you would be stretched as you were sucked in."
You'd be dead long before then.
bcm79Jan 25, 2012Buried
Think of an old-fashioned vacuum thermos, the glass kind that kept coffee hot for hours. Space is a vacuum, and a vacuum is an extremely poor conductor of heat.
There are three basic kinds of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radiation. If you're not touching anything there is no conduction, and since there is no air there is no convection. Therefore you can only radiate heat, and you'll lose it about as fast as your coffee in a vacuum thermos. (With a lot of small variations.)
You may have ruptured ear drums, and a lot of bruising as small capillaries burst, but if you remember to exhale quickly as you depressurize, you'll have a few seconds to find the switch to turn the air back on before you black out.
matt1600Jan 25, 2012Buried
It's simple, just eject the core, it works in Star Trek. That's pretty accurate. :)